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Publications 


OF 


FIELD  MUSEUM  OF  NATURAL 
HISTORY 


ANTHROPOLOGICAL  SERIES 
Volume  XVI 


CHICAGO 
1923 


537310 


Field  Museum  of  Natural  History 

Publication  216 

Anthropological  Series  Volume  XVI 


JAPANESE  SWORD-MOUNTS 

IN  THE  COLLECTIONS  OF 
FIELD  MUSEUM 

BY 

Helen  C.  Gunsaulus 

Assistant  Curator  of  Japanese  Ethnology 


61  Plates 


Berthold  Laufer 
Curator  of  Anthropology 


1  ,9%24 


wwwm 


Field  Museum  of  Natural  History 

Publication  216 

Anthropological  Series  Volume  XVI 


JAPANESE  SWORD-MOUNTS 

IN  THE  COLLECTIONS  OF 
FIELD  MUSEUM 

BY 

Helen  C.  Gunsaulus 

Assistant  Curator  of  Japanese  Ethnolog-y 


61  Plates 


Berthold  Laufer 
Curator  of  Anthropology 


1923 


ILU1 


57Z.05 
FA 

~*  CONTENTS 

Preface 5 

List  of  Plates 7 

Introduction 9 

I.     Early  Types  of  Swords,  Ken  and  Tachi.     The  Court  — s. 

Sword  and  Its  Fittings i\—~S 

II.     The  Dai-sho:  Katana  and  Wakizashi.     Small  Swords 

and  Daggers.     Nomenclature  of  the  Fittings  and  tv 

Alloys  Used  for  Mounts  on  the  Dai-sho 31    \ 

III.  Tsuba  of  Swordsmiths  and  Armorers,  Kanayama  and 

Shingen  Tsuba 37 

IV.  Kaneiye  and  Myochin  Nobuiye  and  His  Followers.       46 
V.     Early    Inlays:     Onin,     Fushimi,    Yoshiro,    Tempo, 

Heianjo,  Kaga,  Gomoku-Zogan,  Shoami,  and  Awa       53 
VI.     The  Sixteen  Masters  of  the  Goto  School  and  Their 

Followers 60 

VII.     The  Umetada  Family.     The  I  to  School 67 

VIII.     Foreign  Influence  Illustrated  in  the  Hirado,  Namban, 

and  Hizen  Tsuba.    Jakushi  and  Soten  of  Hikone       73 
IX.     Higo,    Akasaka,    Sunagawa,    Akao,    and    Satsuma 

Tsuba.      Kinai  of  Echizen 79 

X.     The  Nara  and  Hamano  Schools.     Iwama  Masayoshi 

and  His  Followers 86 

XI.     The  Schools  of  Bushu  and  Choshu.  Tetsugendo  Artists       99 
XII.     The  Yokoya  School  and  Its  Subsidiary  Branches:  the 

Iwamoto,  Yanagawa,  Sano,  and  Inagawa  Families     105 

XIII.  The  Omori  and  Ishiguro  Schools 113 

XIV.  The  Ichinomiya  School  and  Hosono  Masamori  of  Kyo- 

to. Sumizogan,  Guribori,  Murakami,  and  Enamels  122 

XV.     The  Schools  of  Mito.    The  Tamagawa  Family 130 

XCI.     The  Uchikoshi  and  Tanaka  Schools.      The  Sonobe 

Family 137 

XVII.     The  Otsuki  School.    Haruaki  Hogen 146 

XVIII.     Goto  Ichijo  and  His  Pupils 154 

Appendix.       Observations    on    the    Restoration    of 

Patina  by  Henry  W.  Nichols 163 

List  of  Signatures  on  Sword  Mounts 167 

General  Index 189 

3 


PREFACE 

In  June,  1916,  Dr.  Frank  W.  Gunsaulus  presented  to  Field  Museum 
of  Natural  History  a  collection  of  919  Japanese  sword-mounts,  among 
these  746  sword-guards  and  173  examples  of  sword-furniture.  The 
nucleus  of  this  collection  had  been  formed  by  Edward  Greey,  who  first 
visited  Japan  in  1854,  completing  his  collection  in  1886.  In  course  of 
time,  other  specimens  were  added  by  Dr.  Gunsaulus  from  such  notable 
collections  as  that  of  Alfred  Beit  of  London  and  Justus  Brinkmann  of 
Hamburg.  Dr.  Gunsaulus'  valuable  gift  to  the  Museum  was  accompa- 
nied by  1,793  negatives  of  sword-guards  (the  obverse  and  reverse 
of  each  having  been  taken),  a  catalogue  in  manuscript  prepared  by  his 
daughter,  Miss  Helen  C.  Gunsaulus,  after  many  years  of  earnest  study 
of  the  subject,  as  well  as  by  a  fine  series  of  books  pertaining  to  Japanese 
art. 

In  1917  the  entire  collection  of  sword-fittings  was  placed  on  exhi- 
bition in  the  old  museum  building,  arranged  in  two  cases  on  narrow 
shelves  in  such  a  manner  that  each  object  could  be  plainly  viewed  and 
studied  from  both  sides.  This  is  essential,  as  the  majority  of  sword- 
guards  are  decorated  or  inscribed  on  both  the  obverse  and  reverse. 

In  1919,  Miss  Helen  C.  Gunsaulus  was  appointed  assistant  curator 
of  Japanese  ethnology  in  this  Museum,  and  revised  completely  the  cata- 
logue of  the  sword-fittings.  She  devoted  more  than  two  years  to  a 
thorough  study  of  the  entire  subject,  the  results  of  which  are  embodied 
in  this  publication. 

The  collection  is  now  re-installed  in  Frank  W.  Gunsaulus  Hall,  which 
was  opened  on  the  5th  of  August,  1922.  A  selective  method  has  been 
adopted,  only  228  guards  and  118  smaller  mounts  having  been  chosen 
for  exhibition.  The  remainder  of  the  collection  has  been  classified  and 
deposited  in  a  cabinet  in  office  51  on  the  third  floor,  where  it  is  available 
for  students. 

Despite  the  important  contributions  which  have  been  made  to  this 
subject  by  such  able  students  as  the  late  Marquis  de  Tressan  and  Henri 
Joly,  it  is  hoped  that  this  volume,  by  its  compact  and  critical  presenta- 
tion of  the  material  at  hand  and  the  addition  of  novel  information  in 
respect  to  the  metal  craftsmen,  will  prove  of  interest  and  make  an  appeal 
to  the  students  of  Japan,  as  well  as  the  ethnologists  and  folklorists  in 
general. 

The  signatures  appearing  on  the  sword-mounts,  names  of  artists, 
families,  and  localities,  have  been  arranged  in  an  alphabetical  index  with 


6  Preface 

Chinese  characters  It  is  hoped  that  this  index  will  be  a  useful  and 
convenient  instrumentality  to  the  reader  and  to  those  who  may  be 
endeavoring  to  catalogue  or  arrange  for  exhibition  purposes  examples  of 
this  craft. 

The  illustrations  are  all  selected  from  specimens  in  the  Gunsaulus 
collection,  with  the  exception  of  those  reproduced  in  Plates  I  and  II,  for 
which  credit  is  due  to  the  Brooklyn  Institute  Museum,  Brooklyn,  and  the 
Metropolitan  Museum  of  Art,  New  York. 

It  is  a  matter  of  profound  regret  that  Dr.  Frank  W.  Gunsaulus,  who 
made  this  collection  and  followed  with  keen  interest  every  step  made  in 
the  progress  of  its  study,  has  not  been,  allowed  to  live  to  see  this  work 
completed. 

B.  Laufer. 


LIST  OF  PLATES 


I. 

II. 

III. 

IV. 

V. 
VI. 

VII. 

VIII. 

IX. 

X. 

XI. 

XII. 

XIII. 

XIV. 

XV. 
XVI. 

XVII. 

XVIII. 

XIX. 

XX. 

XXI. 

XXII. 
XXIII. 

XXIV. 

XXV. 

XXVI. 

XXVII. 

XXVIII. 
XXIX. 

XXX. 

XXXI. 

XXXII. 

XXXIII. 

XXXIV. 


Tsuba    Found    in    Dolmen 


Brooklyn    Institute 
Metropolitan  Museum  of 
Cat.   Nos.   130754. 
Cat.  Nos. 

Cat.   Nos. 


Pommels    and 

Museum 
Pommel  and  Tsuba  Found  in  Dolmens. 

Art,  New  York 
Shitogi   Tsuba.     Types   of   Early   Decoration. 

130861,  130881 
Tsuba  with  Decoration  in  Honzogan  and  Nunome-zogan. 

130878,  130879 
Iron  Tsuba  of  Early  Period.    Cat.  Nos.  131 167,  131057 
Iron   Tsuba   with   Decoration   Chiselled   in   Silhouette. 

130880,  130804,  130844,  130890 
Two  Types  of  Shingen  Tsuba.    Cat.  Nos.  130764,  131052 
Iron  Tsuba  of  Kaneiye  School.    Cat.  Nos.  130783,  130815,  131085 
Iron  Tsuba  by  Late  Myochin  Artists.    Cat.  Nos.  130778,  131258 
Tsuba  of  Fushimi-Yoshiro  Type.    Cat.  Nos.  130929,  131020,  130866, 

131 164 
Tempo,  Heianjo,  and  Kaga  Tsuba.    Cat.  Nos.  130864,  130872,  131225, 

I3I44I 
Gomoku-zogan,  Shoami,  and  Awa  Inlay.     Cat.  Nos.  130932,  131266, 

130855,  I3I445 
Mounts   by  Goto  Artists   of   the  Eighteenth   Century.     Cat.   Nos. 

I3II55.  130723,  131316,  131381 
Tsuba  of  Goto  School.    Kozuka  by  Nomura  Masayoshi.    Cat.  Nos. 

130601,  130609,  131363 
Tsuba  Attributed  to  Umetada  Myoju.    Cat.  No.  131029 
Mounts  by  Artists  of  Umetada  Family.     Cat.  Nos.  131486,  131369, 

131508,  131177 
Tsuba  of  the  Ito  School.    Cat.  Nos.  131275,  131 159.    Tsuba  in  Fig.  3 

in  Museum  of  Art,  Toledo,  Ohio. 
Tsuba  of  the  ltd  School.    Namban  Tsuba.    Cat.  Nos.  130940,  131514, 

131 137 
Tsuba  of  Hizen  and  School  of  Jakushi.    Cat.  Nos.  131 138,  130742 
Tsuba  by  Soten  of  Hikone  in  Goshii.    Cat.  Nos.  130841,  130801 
Tsuba  of  Higo  Province.    Cat.  Nos.  130981,  130984,  130817 
Tsuba  of  Higo  Province.    Cat.  Nos.  131001,  131032,  131037 
Tsuba  of  Akao  and  Satsuma.     Tsuba  by  Kinai.     Cat.  Nos.  131018, 

131098,  131220 
Tsuba  by  Kinai  of  Echizen.    Cat.  Nos.  130777,  130776 
Tsuba  by  Early  Nara  Masters.    Cat.  Nos.  130705,  130730,  130607 
Tsuba   by    Tsuneshige.      Fuchikashira    by    Yasuchika.     Cat.    Nos. 
130660,  131328 
Tsuba  of  Nara  and  Hamano  Schools.     Cat.  Nos.  130638,   130641, 

130657 
Mounts  by  Hamano  Artists.    Cat.  Nos.  130704,  13 1338,  1 30621 
Mounts   by    Hamano   Artists.     Cat.    Nos.    130598,    131334,    130677, 

I3I339- 
Tsuba  by  Masaharu.    Mounts  by  Hata  Nobuyoshi.    Cat.  Nos.  130647, 

130719,  131365 
Tsuba  by  Bushu  Artists.    Cat.  Nos.  130820,  130822 
Bushu  and  Choshu  Tsuba.    Cat.  Nos.  131 193,  130798,  130781 
Choshu  Tsuba.    Cat.  Nos.  131219,  131 142,  131221 
Mounts  by  Artists  of  Tetsugendo,  Cat.  Nos.  130838,  131403,  131375 


8 


List  of  Plates 


XXXV.    Mounts  by  Yokoya  Artists.    Cat.  Nos.  131341,  130674,  130756 
XXXVI.    Mounts  by  Iwamoto  Konkwan.     Cat.  Nos.  131355,  131356,  130673 
XXXVII.    Mounts  by  Yanagawa  Artists.    Tsuba  by  Sano  Naoyoshi.    Cat.  Nos. 

130612,  I3I343,  131388,  130691 
XXXVIII.    Tsuba  by  Sano  Naoteru  and  Inagawa  Shigehisa.     Cat.  Nos.  130609, 
130610,  130655 
XXXIX.    Tsuba  by  Omori  Masters.    Cat.  Nos.  130600,  130670,  130678 

XL.     Mounts  by  Pupils  of  Omori  Teruhide.     Cat.  Nos.   130780,   131362, 
I3I359,  130672 
XLI.    Mounts  by  Ishiguro  Artists.     Cat.  Nos.  130678,  131350,  130653 
XLII.    Mounts  by  Ishiguro  Artists.    Cat.  Nos.  130639,  131349,  130689 
XLIII.    Tsuba  by  Ichinomiya  Nagatsune  and  Hosono  Masamori.     Cat.  Nos. 

130682,  130683,  130876 
XLIV.    Mounts  by  Ichinomiya  Nagatsune  and  Tsuji  Yoshinori.    Cat.  Nos. 

I3I37I,  I3I373,  I3I372,  I3I493 
XLV.    Guribori,    Mother-of-Pearl,    and    Enamel    Decoration.      Cat.    Nos. 

131278,  131 198,  131281 
XLVI.    Tsuba  by  Mito  Artists.    Cat.  Nos.  131263,  130606,  130775 
XLVII.    Tsuba  by  Mito  Artists.    Cat.  Nos.  131283,  130802,  130805 
XLVIII.    Tsuba  by  Tamagawa  Artists.     Cat.  Nos.  130624,  130726,  130593 
XLIX.    Mounts  by  Uchikoshi  Hironaga.    Cat.  Nos.  130643,  131515,  130602, 
I3I377,  I3I376 
L.    Tsuba  by  Hiroyasu  and  Hiroyoshi  of  Uchikoshi  School.    Cat.  Nos. 

130732,  130605,  130736 
LI.    Tsuba  by  Toshikage  and  Masakage  of  Tanaka  School.     Cat.  Nos. 
130804,  13 1 506 
LII.    Tsuba  by  Takamoto  Hidemune.     Mounts  by  Sonobe  Artists.     Cat. 

Nos.  130646,  130640,  131370,  130763 
LIII.    Tsuba  by  Otsuki   Mitsuoki  and  Kano  Natsuo.     Cat.  Nos.   130771, 

130772 
LIV.    Tsuba  by  Hidekune  and  Takechika  of  Otsuki  School.     Cat.   Nos. 
130645,  130845,  1 30591 
LV.    Mounts  by  Haruaki  Hogen.  Cat.  Nos.  131346,  131345,  130699 
LVI.    Tsuba  by  Haruaki  Hogen.    Cat.  No.  130720 
LVII.    Mounts  by  Goto  Ichijd.    Tsuba  by  Funada  Ikkin.    Cat.  Nos.  131321, 

13 1 322,  130658 
LVIII.     Tsuba  by  Fukui  Ichiju  and  Kazunori.    Cat.  Nos.  130844,  130757 
LIX.    Tsuba  by  Goto  Seii,   Fuchikashira  by  Goto  Mitsuyasu  and  Ichijo. 

Cat.  Nos.  130636,  131318-19,  131323 
LX.    Tsuba  by  Miyata  Nobuhisa.    Cat.  No.  130762 
LXI.     Selection  of  Seals  and  Kakihan. 


JAPANESE  SWORD-MOUNTS 

By  Helen  C.  Gunsaulus 
,  INTRODUCTION 

In  1876,  there  was  issued  in  Japan  the  edict  known  as  the  Haitorei 
regulation,  by  order  of  which  the  samurai  were  commanded  to  relinquish 
the  privilege  of  wearing  two  swords, — "an  outward  evidence  that  dis- 
tinguished men  of  their  order  from  common  toilers  after  gain."  In  con- 
sequence of  this  act  there  soon  appeared  in  the  markets  of  Europe  the 
remarkably  fitted  weapons  which  now  are  among  the  most  admired 
testimonials  to  the  outside  world  of  what  Japan  is  and  has  been  in  the 
field  of  art  and  craftsmanship. 

It  is  estimated  that  in  1877  there  were  approximately  two  millions  of 
samurai,  the  descendants  or  followers  of  a  calling  which  had  existed 
from  the  tenth  to  the  nineteenth  century.  When  we  consider  that  for 
these  hundreds  of  years  armorers  and  metal  craftsmen  had  labored  to 
produce  the  finest  weapon,  we  are  not  surprised  at  the  calculation  that 
at  this  time  there  were  five  million  blades,  many  of  which  had  been 
handed  down  as  the  cherished  defenders  of  several  generations.  Nor 
should  the  number  of  sword-fittings  be  difficult  to  account  for.  Whereas 
a  samurai  might  possess  one  trusted  blade,  he  more  than  likely  would 
have  four  or  five  sets  of  fittings  which  would  be  adjusted  for  different 
occasions.  "Added  to  this  large  number  are  those  which  were  made  for 
merchants  who,  becoming  prosperous  during  the  Tokugawa  shogunate 
(1603-1868),  established  the  custom  of  wearing  a  sword  by  the  side  of 
the  koshisage  (writing  outfit)  in  their  belts."  x 

This,  in  a  measure,  accounts  for  the  many  replicas  and  imitations  that 
are  to  be  found  everywhere,  as  does  also  the  fact  that  collections  of 
sword-fittings  have  existed  in  Japan  since  the  sixteenth  century,  and  col- 
lectors in  Europe  have  augmented  the  production  of  shiiremono  ("ready- 
made  articles")  ever  since  the  early  days  when  Nagasaki  was  the  only 
outlet  for  Japanese  culture. 

In  estimating  the  extent  to  which  the  sword  was  used,  it  must  be 
remembered  that  the  wearing  of  a  sword  was  the  general  practice  of  the 
common  people  regulated  by  many  prohibitions  issued  from  time  to 

'M.  de  Tressan,  Involution  de  la  garde  de  sabre  japonaise  (Bull.  Soc. 
Franco-Japonaise,  Vol.  XXV,  p.  43). 


io  Japanese  Sword-Mounts 

time  and  quoted  in  detail  by  H.  Joly.  x  The  Buddhist  priesthood  must 
likewise  be  taken  into  account.2  Though  the  farseeing  Yoritomo,  in  the 
twelfth  century,  had  curbed  the  strength  of  the  Buddhist  priests,  his  fol- 
lowers, more  lax  in  their  methods,  allowed  Buddhist  militarism  to  grow 
to  an  enormous  degree.  In  the  early  fourteenth  century,  supporting  the 
Emperor  Go  Daigo,  the  bonzes  made  a  desperate  assault  against  the 
Ho  jo  rulers.  Finally,  in  the  sixteenth  century,  they  had  accumulated 
such  military  power  and  wealth  in  estates  that  Nobunaga,  realizing  the 
menace  of  their  organization,  attacked  the  monasteries  which  by  this 
time  were  practically  fortresses  filled  with  priests,  equipped  with 
weapons  and  armor,  fighting  among  themselves  as  rival  sects  or  siding 
with  any  warring  faction  which  could  win  their  support.  The  monaste- 
ries of  Hiyeisan  and  Hongwanji  were  fired  in  1571  and  1579,  respect- 
ively, and  in  those  bitter  struggles  thousands  of  warrior  priests  fell; 
Buddhism  as  a  militant  force  was  fatally  struck. 

From  the  fifth  to  the  sixteenth  century,  Japan  had  no  real  period  of 
peace;  wars  foreign,  civil,  or  religious,  clan  clashes  and  conquests  had 
developed  a  military  organization  of  great  complexity  with  its  own  cult, 
"the  religion  of  loyalty"  (bushido),  "the  noblesse  oblige  of  the  warrior 
class."3  "The  soul  of  the  samurai"  is  a  happy  characterization  applied 
to  the  sword  and  familiar  to  all  who  are  students  of  old  Japan.  The 
short  outline  of  the  development  of  feudalism  which  follows  will  readily 
help  in  establishing  the  truth  of  this  expression,  and  may  not  be  amiss 
in  this  study  in  accounting  for  the  many  different  schools  of  metal 
workers  who  decorated  the  sword,  and  who  gained  a  place  among  the 
artists  of  the  ages  from  their  products  in  this  craft  alone.  Following  the 
historical  events  one  by  one  there  may  be  traced  the  steps  in  the  transi- 
tion of  the  decorations  on  the  sword,  from  those  found  on  a  purely 
fighting  weapon  to  those  which  appear  finally  on  the  ornamental  sword 
of  the  nineteenth  century. 


Though  feudalism  came  into  full  form  under  Yoritomo,  the  founder 
of  the  shogunate  in  the  late  twelfth  century,  the  germs  of  this  system 
had  long  been  existent  before  this  period,  as  I.  Nitobe  states  in  the  first 
chapter  of  his  book  "Bushido."  The  original  unit  of  the  social  organiza- 
tion was  the  clan,  composed  of  persons  claiming  descendance  from  a 

1  The  Sword  and  Same,  p.  136. 

'  See  K.  Asakawa,  Life  of  a  Monastic  Sho  in  Mediaeval  Japan  (Annual  Rep. 
of  American  Hist.  Assn.,  Vol.  I,  pp.  311-342),  especially  notes  78,  97,  103,  120. 
3 1.  Nitobe,  Busjjido,  p.  4. 


Introduction  ii 

common  ancestor,  and  through  this  bond  establishing  an  individual 
ancestor  worship.1 

K.  Asakawa,2  in  his  scientific  study  of  the  social  organism  prior  to 
the  reform  of  645,  pictures  in  detail  the  quasi-patriarchal,  quasi-tribal 
organization  over  which  the  emperor,  claiming  descent  from  the  Sun 
Goddess,  Amaterasu,  ruled.  Stating  the  situation  in  Lafcadio  Hearn's3 
words,  disputes  between  the  clans  were  undoubtedly  frequent;  and 
gradually  the  most  powerful  clan  group  dominated  over  the  whole 
number,  its  special  cult  becoming  the  national  religion.  This  was  the 
worship  of  the  Goddess  of  the  Sun  from  whom  the  supreme  ruler,  the 
Mikado,  claimed  descent.* 

Though  the  clans  had  this  common  tradition  expressed  in  the  wor- 
ship of  the  emperor,  they  retained  their  independent  organizations  and 
deities.  The  clan  remained  the  real  unit  of  society  until  the  Meiji  era, 
witness  the  power  of  the  Fujiwara,  Taira,  Minamoto,  Hojo,  and  Ashi- 
kaga  families  from  the  eleventh  to  the  sixteenth  centuries,  as  well  as  the 
influence  of  the  Satsuma  and  Choshu  clans  immediately  before  the  over- 
throw of  the  Tokugawa  shogunate  in  1868. 

During  the  fifth  and  sixth  centuries,  certain  clan  heads  were  rising 
so  rapidly  in  power  that  the  imperial  authority  was  in  danger  of  being 
overshadowed.  Accounts  in  the  Nihongi  of  the  struggles  between  the 
Mononobe  and  Soga  families5  vividly  portray  the  unsettled  conditions 
surrounding  the  royal  palace.  The  introduction  of  Buddhism  into 
Japan  in  a.d.  552  and  the  acceptance  of  the  new  religion  by  the  emperor 
in  587  were  deciding  factors  in  the  establishment  of  the  power  of  the 
Soga  family  who  fostered  Buddhism  and  supported  the  emperor,  at  the 
same  time  opposing  the  Mononobe  and  Nakatomi  who  were  opposed  to 
the  new  creed.  During  the  half  century  preceding  the  reform  of  645, 
the  Soga  family  reigned  supreme,  usurping  the  government  of  the  land 
in  many  ways.6  Finally  the  younger  Soga  was  murdered  in  the  presence 
of  the  empress,  and  the  elder  Soga  shortly  after  was  executed. 

When,  in  645,  the  power  of  the  Soga  family  came  to  an  end,  the 

1 W.  Aston  (Shinto,  p.  46)  prefers  the  terminology  "pseudo-ancestor  wor- 
ship" in  the  recognition  of  nature  deities,  clearly  differentiating  between  ancestor 
worship  so-called  and  the  Shinto  adoption  of  ancestral  gods. 

2  The  Early  Institutional  Life  of  Japan,  pp.  32,  59-66. 

1  Japan,  An  Interpretation,  p.  262. 

*  It  is  interesting  to  observe  in  this  connection  that  through  all  the  centuries 
even  the  most  bitter  enemies  of  the  emperor  have  acknowledged  him  to  be  the 
only  legitimate  ruler,  the  son  of  Heaven  and  the  direct  descendant  of  the  Sun 
Goddess. 

5W.  Aston,  Nihongi,  Vol.  II,  pp.  105-115. 

*  Op.  cit.,  pp.  178,  182,  183,  189,  191,  193. 


12  Japanese  Sword-Mounts 

emperor,  determined  to  insure  his  authority,  adopted  the  Chinese 
system  of  government,  along  with  the  higher  learning  and  many  of  the 
arts  which  had  naturally  come  over  to  Japan  in  the  train  of  Buddhism. 
The  reform  of  645  outlined  in  detail  by  K.  Asakawa  in  "The  Early 
Institutional  Life  of  Japan"  would,  as  he  says,  have  amounted  to  a 
revolution,  had  not  the  emperor  himself  accomplished  the  deed.  "The 
fundamental  principle  of  society  was  changed  from  a  quasi-patriarchism 
which  had  consistently  ruled  nearly  all  the  institutions  of  the  nation,  to 
a  form  of  the  state  in  which  a  uniform  law  directly  controlled  all  the 
subjects,  who  were  sharply  separated  into  two  classes,  one  ruling  over 
the  other  and  in  return  being  supported  by  it."1 

The  emperor  regrouped  all  of  the  clan  families  into  eight  new  castes, 
thus  creating  new  orders  of  nobility  and  changing  the  form  of  govern- 
ment from  simple  feudalism  to  centralized  monarchy  with  eight  depart- 
ments of  state.  Society  was  divided  into  two  classes, — the  governing, 
including  all  nobles,  and  the  military ;  and  the  producing  comprising  the 
farmers,  artisans  and  merchants.  This  great  gulf  between  the  people 
and  the  political  power  endured  until  1868.  The  producing  class  was 
the  nation  itself ;  the  governing  class  was  a  nation  within  a  nation,  apart 
and  all  powerful.  In  the  seventh  century  the  emperor  was  sovereign 
over  all,  in  truth,  as  well  as  name. 

"All  lands  privately  held  by  local  lords  and  all  people  subjected  to 
group  chieftains  were  decreed  to  be  henceforth  public  and  free  and  sub- 
ject only  to  the  emperor.  The  designation  of  local  lords  and  group 
chieftains  were  allowed  to  be  kept  by  those  who  had  formerly  possessed 
them,  but  only  as  mere  titles.  ...  In  lands  thus  made  public,  provinces 
were  established  and  governors  appointed.  Under  those  governors 
served  the  local  lords  and  group  chieftains  as  secretaries  of  various 
official  grades  or  as  district  governors,  all  salaried,  paid  in  natural 
products,  of  course,  since  no  currency  existed  at  that  time."2 

This  statement  is  quoted  in  full,  for  it  was  the  public  lands  here 
referred  to,  which  were  soon  encroached  upon  by  warriors  in  the  field 
and  by  the  Fujiwara  nobles,  who  from  the  seventh  century  on  held 
almost  all  the  important  offices  at  court,  accumulating  such  control  that 
the  title  of  kwambaku  (literally,  "the  bolt  inside  the  gate,"  but  meaning 
"to  represent  the  Mikado")  was  bestowed  upon  Fujiwara  Mototsune  in 
a.d.  888.3 

Shortly  after  the  introduction  of  Buddhism,  the  role  of  the  emperor 

1 K.  Asakawa,  The  Early  Institutional  Life  of  Japan,  p.  323. 
SK.  Hara,  Introduction  to  the  History  of  Japan,  p.  115. 
SW.  Griffis,  Mikado's  Empire,  Vol.  I,  p.  no. 


Introduction  13 

changed  from  supreme  ruler  to  cloistered  sovereign.  The  Fujiwara 
chiefs  used  the  interest  in  the  new  religion  as  a  tool  for  the  increase  of 
their  own  dominion.  On  their  advice,  many  of  the  emperors,  after  rul- 
ing for  a  short  time,  some  at  the  early  ages  of  five  and  ten  years,  re- 
tired from  active  life,  shaved  their  heads,  and  became  Buddhist  monks, 
leaving  the  administration  in  the  hands  of  ministers  who  readily  rele- 
gated more  and  more  authority  unto  themselves.  The  kwambaku  was 
regent  during  the  minority  of  the  emperor ;  and  this  power,  coupled 
with  the  fact  that  the  wives  of  the  ruler  were  ever  chosen  from  this 
family,  gave  the  Fujiwara  unlimited  sway.  So  closely  hedged  in  by 
etiquette  that  no  subject  save  the  wives  and  concubines  saw  him,  the 
emperor  soon  became  the  mere  puppet  in  the  hands  of  the  ministers. 
The  court  life  of  this  period  developed  into  a  luxurious  pastime.  "The 
mode  of  life  of  the  Mikados  was  not  such  as  to  make  them  able  rulers. 
They  passed  their  time  surrounded  only  by  women  and  priests,  oscillat- 
ing between  indolence  and  debauchery,  between  poet-tastering  and  gor- 
geous temple-services.  This  was  the  brilliant  age  of  Japanese  classical 
literature  which  lived  and  moved  and  had  its  being  in  the  atmosphere  of 
an  effeminate  court."1 

,  In  this  rich  ground  the  seeds  of  feudalism  took  deep  root.  While 
the  Fujiwara  had  monopolized  the  offices  of  the  palace  in  Kyoto,  the 
two  great  families,  the  Taira  and  Minamoto,  who  traced  their  lineage 
to  the  emperor,  as  did  the  Fujiwara,  had  constantly  filled  the  military 
positions.  The  Minamoto  warriors  had  subdued  the  Ainu  and  the  war- 
ring tribes  in  the  east  and  north ;  the  descendants  of  the  Taira  clan  had 
had  the  same  pronounced  success  in  the  west  and  south.  After  the 
storm  of  war,  in  the  peaceful  quietude  which  ensued,  these  two  clans, 
both  jealous  of  the  dictation  of  the  effeminate  Fujiwara,  became  hated 
rivals,  and  each  strove  to  possess  the  imperial  palace. 

According  to  Griffis,2  prior  to  a.d.  645,  all  subjects  of  the  Mikado 
had  to  serve  in  the  field,  but  under  Fujiwara  dictation  the  allurements 
of  the  court  were  such  that  the  civilians  at  Nara  or  Kyoto  were  only 
too  willing  to  grant  the  title  of  shogun  to  those  who  would  go  forth  to 
subjugate  the  barbarians  and  quiet  the  warring  tribes.  The  shogun  was 
commander-in-chief  in  early  times  appointed  by  the  emperor.  At  a  later 
date,  this  same  generalissimo  was  simply  the  most  powerful  of  the 
daimyo,  his  office  becoming  an  hereditary  usurpation  of  power.  The 
claims  of  reward  made  by  the  chieftains  who  had  brought  the  country  to 
order,  were  repeatedly  rejected  and  ignored.     Being  opened  by  the 

1 B.  Chamberlain,  Things  Japanese,  5th  ed.,  p.  232. 
*  The  Japanese  Nation  in  Evolution,  pp.  180-206. 


14  Japanese  Sword-Mounts 

Fujiwara  regent,  none  of  them  reached  the  emperor.  Having  gained 
great  prestige  and  power  in  the  provinces  where  they  had  been  the  sole 
representatives  of  the  government,  the  warrior  leaders,  after  receiving 
nothing  from  the  capital,  determined  to  reward  their  followers  with 
grants  of  land,  knowing  that  they  were  ever  able  to  back  their  claims 
with  the  sword.  Added  to  this  feudalization  of  the  country,  the  Fuji- 
wara regents  granted  offices  as  civil  functionaries  over  conquered  dis- 
tricts to  the  host  of  imperial  princes,  sons  of  the  sovereign's  numerous 
wives.  They  in  time  seized  the  land,  and  also  became  masters  of  huge 
domains.  In  a.d.  986  the  Fujiwara  clan  controlled  over  two  hundred 
houses  of  dependent  families.  The  military  and  nobility  were  exempt 
from  taxes,  and  the  peasants  who  were  stripped  of  their  land  were  soon 
ground  down  to  a  most  miserable  state.  The  private  landed  estates, 
which  thus  sprang  up  over  the  country,  as  it  was  rapidly  being  opened 
up,  are  known  as  sho ;  and,  since  they  later  came  almost  entirely  under 
the  control  of  the  warrior  classes,  are  of  particular  interest  from  the 
point  of  view  of  this  study.  Again  quoting  K.  Asakawa,1  "it  was  the 
sho  that  overthrew  the  Japanese  state-system  reconstructed  in  the 
seventh  century."  Owing  to  the  growing  luxury  of  the  court  and  its 
devotion  to  the  Buddhist  church,  the  government  encouraged  the  private 
cultivation  of  land,  intending  that  the  benefit  should  go  to  the  common 
people  in  place  of  the  local  magnates  or  court  nobles  who  took  advantage 
of  the  situation.  The  next  step  was  the  granting  of  large  tracts,  known 
as  "temple  lands,"  to  the  Buddhist  temples  which  were  not  to  be  taxed. 
Added  to  these  stretches  of  land  immune  from  taxation  were  the  "im- 
perial lands," — grants  freely  disposed  of  by  the  emperor  to  members 
of  the  royal  household  or  other  high  personages.  Private  persons  were 
at  the  same  time  cultivating  land  so  rapidly  that  by  the  ninth  century, 
in  defiance  of  the  law,  huge  domains  were  in  the  hands  of  powerful  men, 
who  claimed  to  be  following  the  desires  of  the  government,  and  thereby 
gained  exemption  from  taxation.  Owing  to  this  illegal  aggrandizement 
of  land,  the  peasants,  who  were  almost  the  only  remaining  tax-payers,  in 
many  cases  provided  themselves  with  arms  against  further  loss,  or  de- 
serted their  lands  and  became  outlaws.  Many  of  the  provincial  gover- 
nors of  the  provinces  stayed  in  Kyoto,  leaving  the  administration  of 
their  lands  to  their  lieutenants.  These  last-named  and  the  private  hold- 
ers of  vast  domains  surrounded  themselves  with  private  warriors,  many 
of  whom  had  seen  service  on  the  frontier.  From  this  stock  sprang  the 
samurai.  "They  were  a  privileged  class,  and  must  originally  have  been 
a  rough  breed  who  made  fighting  their  vocation.     This  class  was  nat- 

1  Feudal  Land  Tenure  in  Japan  (American  Hist.  Review,  Vol.  XX,  1914,  p.  5). 


Introduction  15 

urally  recruited,  in  a  long  period  of  constant  warfare,  from  the  man- 
liest and  the  most  adventurous;  and  all  the  while  the  process  of  elimina- 
tion went  on,  the  timid  and  the  feeble  being  sorted  out,  and  only  'a  rude 
race,  all  masculine,  with  brutish  strength,'  to  borrow  Emerson's  phrase, 
surviving  to  form  families  and  the  ranks  of  the  samurai."1 

It  was  due  to  the  developments  outlined  above  that  the  samurai  or 
"fighting  knights"  came  into  the  important  place  which  they  held  for 
seven  centuries.  The  word  satnurau  means  "to  be  on  guard,"  and  before 
the  twelfth  century  referred  to  those  warriors  who  guarded  the  em- 
peror's palace.  However,  as  the  conquest  of  the  country  developed 
under  the  Minamoto  and  Taira  clans,  the  need  for  soldiery  was  so  im- 
mediate in  many  instances,  that  instead  of  waiting  for  an  army  to  be 
raised  by  the  government,  these  same  leaders  would  call  upon  the 
samurai,  many  of  whom  had  left  the  luxurious  Fujiwara  court,  had  ob- 
tained power  and  position  in  their  native  districts,  and  were  ever  ready 
for  daring  adventures.  By  the  latter  half  of  the  eleventh  century,  when 
the  Minamoto  and  Taira  chieftains  each  were  eyeing  the  imperial 
palace,  the  military  power  was  silently  massed  behind  them,  and  the 
court  was  left  with  almost  no  support  in  the  form  of  trained  warriors. 
Surrounded  by  their  faithful  retainers,  the  Taira  and  Minamoto  moved 
to  Kyoto.  A  rival  claim  to  the  throne  soon  embroiled  them  in  the  strug- 
gle for  supremacy,  known  as  the  wars  of  the  Genji  (Minamoto)  and 
Heike  (Taira)  clans.  Each  side  supported  a  rival  claimant  to  the  throne. 
In  1 1 56  Kiyomori  of  the  Taira  clan  won  the  day  from  the  Minamoto 
Yoshitomo,  possessed  the  imperial  palace,  filled  the  court  offices  with  his 
relatives,  married  his  daughter  to  the  emperor,  and  in  every  detail  sup- 
planted the  Fujiwara.  The  one  stumbling  block  to  Taira  supremacy  and 
safety  was  the  military  menace  of  the  Minamoto  clan.  This  was  the 
cause  of  the  longest  and  fiercest  struggle  in  Japanese  history. 

The  wars  of  the  Genji  and  Heike  clans  were  full  of  heroic  encoun- 
ters which  have  been  the  inspiration  for  many  artists.  The  names  of 
Yoshiiye,  Yoritomo,  Yoshitsune,  Tametomo,  and  Antoku  shall  ever 
represent  the  brave  spirit  of  Japan.  Each  of  these  heroes  is  the  subject 
of  decoration  on  certain  sword-fittings  in  this  collection,  and  a  more  de- 
tailed picture  of  their  lives  and  their  times  is  given  as  the  characters 
appear  on  certain  specimens  described  in  the  text  following. 

Finally  in  the  battle  of  Dan-no-ura  in  1185  (see  Plate  XX,  Fig.  2), 
the  Minamoto  followers  overcame  the  Taira ;  and  their  rule  which  had 
lasted  twenty-nine  years  came  to  an  end.    It  was  under  Yoritomo,  the 

1 1.  Nitobe,  Bushido,  pp.  7-8. 


16  Japanese  Sword-Mounts 

Minamoto  chieftain,  that  the  shogunate  was  founded,  and  that  Japan, 
though  ever  a  monarchy  from  the  undisputed  superiority  of  the  divinely 
born  sovereign,  became  in  reality  a  duarchy  with  a  heavenly  ruler,  the 
emperor,  dwelling  in  seclusion,  and  a  military  imperator  who  wielded 
all  the  powers  of  the  administration.  Yoritomo  built  the  city  of  Kama- 
kura.  There,  in  the  elegance  of  a  second  court,  pretending  to  follow 
the  emperor's  wishes,  he  managed  to  place  five  of  his  family  as  military 
governors  (shugo)  over  five  extensive  provinces.  These  positions  had 
heretofore  been  held  by  civilians  appointed  from  the  court.  He  re- 
warded other  Minamoto  by  making  them  military  governors  in  other 
districts,  each  to  be  subject  to  the  shogun's  immediate  orders.  Each  of 
these  officers  received  his  pay  from  the  product  of  the  land  under  his 
supervision.  Each  had  entire  charge  and  land  set  aside  for  the  support 
of  his  soldiers.  Thus  the  administration  of  the  country  passed  from  the 
civil  to  the  military,  who  held  it  thenceforward  for  seven  centuries.  The 
province  rulers  under  Yoritomo  were  the  forerunners  of  the  powerful 
daimyo  of  the  sixteenth  century.  , 

Yoritomo,  in  1192,  received  the  title  of  Sei-i  Tai  Shogun  ("Bar- 
barian Subjugating  Great  General").1  The  title  "shogun,"  from  this 
time  forward,  had  a  new  meaning  and  stood  for  such  authority  that 
foreigners  supposed  him  to  be  the  real  sovereign,  as  we  learn  from 
Commodore  Perry's  own  account  and  those  of  the  early  travellers. 

Unlike  Yoritomo  and  his  braver  brother,  Yoshitsune,  the  two  sons 
who  survived  him  at  his  death  in  1199  were  weak  and  dissolute.  The 
system  which  Yoritomo  had  perfected  with  the  greatest  ambition  for  the 
Minamoto  family,  became  the  tool  in  the  hands  of  the  H6j5  regents. 
The  father-in-law  of  Yoritomo  was  Hojo  Tokimasa,  known  as  the  first 
Shikken  of  Kamakura,  "the  Prime  Minister"  to  the  "Shadow  Shoguns." 
He  gained  his  position  through  the  machinations  of  Masako,  the  wife  of 
Yoritomo,  who  preferred  to  increase  the  strength  of  her  father  rather 
than  the  glory  of  her  own  son.  Added  to  the  anomaly  of  two  capitals, 
was  the  power  behind  "the  second  throne,"  which  these  Hojo  regents 
wielded.  Content  with  their  authority,  none  of  the  Hojo  sought  the  title 
of  shogun;  but  dominating  over  and  dictating  for  the  puppet  shoguns 
whom  they  installed  and  banished  at  their  pleasure,  these  tyrants  (for 
such  they  became)  ruled  for  140  years. 

The  repulse  of  the  Mongolian  invasion  in  1281  was  one  of  the  few 
beneficent  acts  of  these  usurpers.  Not  only  were  shoguns  disposed  of 
with  ease,  but  also  emperors  were  deposed  and  sent  into  exile.     The 

'W.  E.  Griffis,  Mikado's  Empire,  Vol.  I,  p.  142. 


Introduction  17 

further  feudalization  of  the  country  was  accomplished  by  the  seizure 
and  division  of  the  estates  of  all  those  who  assisted  the  emperor,  or  in 
any  undertaking  opposed  the  policy  of  these  shikken.      , 

This  usurpation  of  power  and  oppression  of  the  people,  and  more 
especially  the  banishment  of  Go  Daigo,  the  emperor,  awakened  the  in- 
born loyalty  of  three  heroic  men,  Nitta  Yoshisada,  Ashikaga  Takauji, 
and  Kusunoki  Masashige.  Nitta  Yoshisada,  though  a  captain  in  the 
Hojo  army,  refused  to  fight  the  imperial  forces,  which  he  was  ordered 
to  do.  He  deserted  his  command,  sent  word  to  the  exiled  emperor, 
gathered  his  retainers  about  him,  and  within  a  few  days  the  city  of 
Kamakura  was  burned  to  the  ground.  Ashikaga  Takauji  and  Kusunoki 
Masashige  restored  the  imperial  power  in  the  west.  The  Hojo  leaders 
and  their  vassals  were  overcome,  the  report  being  that  6,800  were  either 
slain  or  committed  harakiri. 

In  1335  the  exiled  emperor  Go  Daigo  came  back,  but  peace  did  not 
return  with  him  to  the  country,  for  a  new  cause  for  war  appeared.  Ashi- 
kaga Takauji  had  through  treachery  lost  the  imperial  favour.  In  con- 
sequence he  sought  out  Kogen,  one  of  the  emperors  deposed  by  the 
Hojo,  and  setting  him  up  as  sovereign  and  establishing  a  rival  shogunate, 
Go  Daigo  was  again  forced  to  flee.  Each  branch  of  the  imperial  house- 
hold was  supported  by  powerful  daimyo.  This  civil  war,  through  years 
of  bloody  fighting,  changed  from  a  contest  in  which  the  imperial  suc- 
cession was  the  factor,  to  a  struggle  between  numerous  feudal  lords 
fighting  for  more  land  and  more  influence.  For  fifty-six  years  Japan 
continued  to  have  two  emperors  until  from  alarm  at  the  disintegration 
of  the  country,  Ashikaga  Yoshimitsu  acknowledged  Go-Komatsu  as 
legitimate  ruler  in  1392.  , 

Military  domination,  however,  had  completely  disorganized  the  nobil- 
ity who  sought  protection  from  the  powerful  daimyo,  for  whom  military 
magistracies  had  become  hereditary.  Even  the  shogunate  lost  its  old 
significance  in  the  unceasing  contests  of  the  clan  chiefs  for  more  land, — 
contests  in  which  they  amassed  such  wealth  and  power  that  each  became 
a  law  unto  himself,  supported  by  his  own  armed  retainers.  Under  the 
thirteen  Ashikaga  shoguns  from  1336- 1573,  Japan  lived  through  her 
darkest  days.  Crime,  neglect  of  agriculture  and  industry,  seizure  of 
land,  and  ceaseless  war  made  the  name  of  Ashikaga  hated  by  all  the 
generations.  The  emperor  and  the  nobles  were  stripped  of  any  influence 
or  wealth,  the  shogun  himself  had  no  authority.  The  whole  country  had 
become  divided  as  spoil  among  the  daimyo  who  were  surrounded  by  their 
samurai,  loyal  to  the  last  degree  in  their  devotion  and  allegiance  to  their 
military  chief,  subjects  of  the  emperor  only  in  theory. 


18  Japanese  Sword-Mounts 

At  this  crucial  moment  in  the  history  of  the  country,  there  arose  one, 
who,  deposing  Ashikaga  Yoshiaki,  determined  to  centralize  the  authority 
of  government  and  bring  the  land  back  to  a  unified  state.  This  was  Oda 
Nobunaga,  the  master  of  six  provinces  in  central  Japan.  Realizing  the 
menace  of  the  Buddhist  priesthood  in  their  strength  of  arms  and  prop- 
erty, he  ordered  a  persecution  of  the  bonzes,  which  in  its  extent  and 
ruthlessness  made  him  the  hated  enemy  of  all  Buddhists  forever.  For 
purposes  of  further  annihilating  them,  he  became  a  strong  supporter  of 
the  Jesuits,  who  had  been  pouring  into  the  country  since  1542.  His  final 
aim  was  to  bring  back  the  emperor  to  supreme  power.  Not  being  of 
Minamoto  descent,  he  never  assumed  the  title  of  shogun ;  but,  supported 
by  his  two  generals,  Hideyoshi  and  Iyeyasu,  and  a  most  powerful  army, 
he  pacified  the  warring  clans,  and  to  a  great  extent  restored  order  to  the 
country.  When  in  the  full  vigor  of  manhood,  at  the  age  of  49,  he  was 
assassinated  by  a  traitor  while  dwelling  in  the  temple  of  Honnoji  in 
Kyoto.  The  act  was  avenged  by  Hideyoshi,  Nobunaga's  loyal  general, 
who  immediately  assumed  complete  power.  He  was  made  "kwambaku," 
and  as  the  officer  nearest  the  emperor  ruled  the  country  for  sixteen 
years.  The  daimyo  had  been  by  no  means  completely  pacified  by  Nobu- 
naga. Hideyoshi  was  skillful  enough  to  occupy  their  minds  and  those  of 
their  followers  in  an  expedition  which,  while  it  was  inglorious,  tended 
toward  the  unifaction  of  the  clans.  This  was  the  conquest  of  Korea, 
begun  in  the  year  1592  and  lasting  for  five  years.  From  the  point  of 
view  of  this  study,  this  conquest  was  the  most  important  event  under 
Hideyoshi's  rule.  , 

Before  the  death  of  Hideyoshi  in  1598,  Iyeyasu,  the  other  general  of 
Nobunaga,  had  been  recognized  as  the  rising  man  of  the  future,  and 
Hideyoshi  had  engineered  the  marriage  of  his  son,  Hideyori,  to  the 
grand-daughter  of  the  coming  ruler.  Tokugawa  Iyeyasu  had  no  inten- 
tion of  backing  the  claim  of  Hideyoshi's  son.  On  the  other  hand,  he  was 
determined  to  become  the  ruler  himself,  and  was  soon  challenged  in  his 
ambitious  plans.  At  the  battle  of  Sekigahara  he  met  the  army  of  his 
adversaries.  His  was  a  united  force  of  80,000  loyal  warriors,  while 
that  of  his  enemies,  though  numbering  130,000,  was  composed  of  the 
troops  returned  from  Korea  and  the  retainers  of  a  league  of  powerful 
daimyo  each  of  whom  had  art  individual  cause  to  fight.1  After  a  most 
terrific  battle,  with  the  loss  of  thousands  of  men,  the  victory  was  to 
Iyeyasu.  , 

This  man  is  thought  by  many  to  be  the  most  remarkable  character 
that  Japan  ever  produced.  He  was  not  only  a  great  general,  but  also 
1 W.  Gmffis,  Japanese  Nation  in  Evolution,  p.  253. 


Introduction  19 

a  far-seeing  statesman,  calm  in  his  methods,  firm  in  his  purpose.  His 
it  was  to  garner  the  fruits  of  victory  which  had  been  won  by  his  prede- 
cessors, Nobunaga  and  Hideyoshi.  There  had  been  no  shogun  for 
thirty-two  years,  since  neither  of  the  former  dictators  was  eligible  for 
that  position.  Nobunaga,  though  an  aristocrat,  was  of  Taira  blood; 
Hideyoshi  had  risen  from  the  ranks  of  the  common  people  by  sheer 
brilliancy  in  military  tactics.  Tokugawa  Iyeyasu,  being  a  descendant 
of  the  Minamoto  family,  soon,  on  account  of  his  evident  power,  was 
created  "Sei  i  Tai  Shogun"  by  the  emperor.  By  him  was  completed  the 
elaborate  feudal  system  of  which  he  was  the  head. 

As  was  observed  above,  through  the  centuries  of  almost  ceaseless 
warfare,  Japan  had  developed  many  mighty  military  chiefs  of  provinces. 
The  land  had  become  the  spoil  which  they  had  divided  among  themselves 
and  their  loyal  adherents.  The  emperor  had  so  long  been  hidden  from 
public  vision,  the  administration  of  the  government  had  so  completely 
passed  into  the  hands  of  shoguns  and  other  usurpers  that  the  old  loyalty 
of  subject  to  emperor  had  been  transferred  and  transformed  into  un- 
divided allegiance  to  an  immediate  military  lord.  Iyeyasu  determined 
to  co-ordinate  and  centralize  the  military  power  under  one  head.  He 
married  three  of  his  daughters  to  powerful  daimyo;  he  invested  three 
of  his  sons  with  very  rich  fiefs.  The  daimyo,  such  as  those  of  Satsuma 
and  Higo  and  other  unconquerable  districts,  he  conciliated;  and  those 
strong  leaders  whom  he  had  conquered  at  Sekigahara  he  tactfully 
"treated  as  equals,  less  fortunate  in  the  game  of  war  than  himself."1 

After  the  re-organization  of  the  daimiates  and  the  redistribution  of 
fiefs,  many  of  which  went  to  his  own  kinsmen,  Iyeyasu  had  so  fixed  the 
balance  of  power  that  the  successful  revolt  of  any  daimyo,  no  matter 
how  strong,  was  next  to  impossible.  In  order  to  hold  a  further  check 
upon  them,  he  required  these  lords  to  pass  a  certain  allotted  time  in  Yedo, 
which  city  he  chose  for  his  capital  in  1 590.  The  processions  of  daimyo 
with  their  samurai  on  their  way  to  Yedo  have  been  described  by  many  a 
writer2  and  delineated  by  many  an  artist.  They  were  the  complete  em- 
bodiment of  the  elaborate  feudal  system  which  had  been  developed 
through  ages  of  fighting.  A  feudal  chief  might  have  as  many  as  one 
thousand  retainers,  all  equipped  with  weapons  and  armor  which  would 
reflect  the  richness  of  their  lord's  domain.  As  they  journeyed  through  the 
country,  all  commoners  were  forced  to  kneel  with  bowed  head  along  the 
roadside.    Should  any  one  fail  to  do  so,  instant  death  was  dealt  by  those 

1W.  Griffis,  Mikado's  Empire,  Vol.  I,  p.  274. 

1  E.  Kaempfer,  History  of  Japan  (J.  MacLehose  ed.  Glasgow  1906),  Vol.  II, 
P-  330. 


20  Japanese  Sword-Mounts 

officers  who  preceded  the  train  in  order  to  compel  due  respect.  Looking 
down  upon  the  procession  was  as  serious  an  offence  as  not  prostrating 
one's  self.    All  shutters  were  closed,  as  the  equipage  moved  along. 

Added  to  this  severance  of  the  peasant  class  from  the  military  was 
the  fact  that  the  samurai  dwelt  within  the  park  surrounding  the  palace 
of  the  daimyo  which  was  called  a  yashiki,  while  the  peasantry  who 
farmed  the  land  dwelt  without.  The  richness  and  beauties  of  the 
palaces  of  the  daimyo  have  been  most  interestingly  described  by  T.  R.  H. 
McClatchie  in  his  article  on  the  "Feudal  Mansions  of  Yedo.m 

The  term  samurai  included  the  daimyo,  their  retainers,  the  hatamoto 
or  flag  bearers,  and  the  private  soldiers  of  the  shogun.  All  received 
hereditary  incomes  of  rice  from  the  government,  all  were  exempt  from 
taxes,  none  engaged  in  business  of  any  sort,  and  all  were  privileged  to 
wear  two  swords.  Through  centuries  of  testing,  there  had  been  devel- 
oped a  sense  of  honor  and  chivalry,  a  strength  of  endurance,  and  an 
almost  complete  self-abnegation  for  the  sake  of  the  feudal  lord  whom 
they  served,  which  helped  to  make  the  samurai  a  unique  product  of 
mankind.  The  sword  had  become  the  symbol  of  power  and  prowess. 
Under  the  influence  of  the  teachings  of  the  Buddhistic  Zen  sect, 
supreme  repose  was  reflected  in  all  art  and  in  the  mode  of  living  of  those 
who  became  its  disciples.  "Not  to  use  the  sword,  but  to  be  the  sword, 
pure,  serene,  immovable,  was  the  ideal  of  the  Ashikaga  knight."2 

Of  such  material  was  the  bulk  of  the  military  class  composed,  when 
Iyeyasu  became  supreme  dictator  and  master.  Though  ever  a  vassal  of 
the  emperor,  Iyeyasu  had  assumed  even  the  protectorship  of  his  sov- 
ereign and  his  court.  He  rewrote  the  codes  for  both  the  kuge  ("no- 
bles") and  the  buke  ("military  men"),  and  outlined  the  principles  of 
law  which  were  enforced  by  the  Tokugawa  shogun  for  the  following  two 
hundred  years.  The  unsuccessful  revolt  of  Hideyori,  son  of  Hideyoshi, 
in  1615,  and  the  massacre  of  the  Christians  at  Shimabara  by  the  order  of 
Iyemitsu  in  1637  were  the  only  events  which  disturbed  two  hundred 
and  fifty  years  of  peace.3 

Emerging  from  the  dark  years  of  war  into  the  transforming  time  of 
quiet  harmony,  the  mode  of  life  of  military  Japan  became  radically 
softened  and  enriched.  Etiquette  was  cultivated  to  the  extreme.  Cus- 
toms, such  as  flower  arrangement,  tea  ceremonies,  and  poetical  contests 
were  rigidly  outlined.     Literature  and  the  arts   were   fostered,  and 

1  Transactions  As.  Soc.  Japan,  Vol.  XV,  pt.  2,  pp.  157-182. 
"Okakura  Kakuzo,  Ideals  of  the  East,  p.  172. 

*  The  importance  of  this  last  event  must  not  be  minimized,  but  cannot  be  fully 
treated  in  this  study.    See  W.  Griffis,  Mikado's  Empire,  pp.  247-264. 


Introduction  21 

daimyd  who  had  lost  much  of  their  political  power  filled  their  days  with 
the  peaceful  pleasures  of  painting  and  poetry.  Costumes  were  of  the 
richest  brocade.  Elegance  was  reflected  in  the  armor  and  swords  which 
during  this  period  of  peace  were  no  longer  the  garments  and  weapons 
of  defence,  but  the  rich  attire  and  ornaments  for  the  purpose  of  parade 
and  adornment.  Added  to  the  peace  of  this  epoch  was  the  exclusive 
policy  of  the  Tokugawa  shogun  which  helped  to  make  for  the  cultivation 
and  refinement  of  the  national  civilization.  Japan  was  an  isolated  nation 
from  1624  until  1868.  Not  only  was  foreign  trade  forbidden,  save  at 
the  port  of  Nagasaki,  where  the  Dutch  were  allowed  a  most  limited 
intercourse,  but  also  foreign  travel  was  absolutely  prohibited.  National 
industry  flourished  to  a  remarkable  degree.  Luxurious  living  was  the 
general  condition  of  the  higher  rank.  Artists  and  artisans  were  con- 
stantly occupied  in  producing  objects  for  the  enriching  of  daily  life. 

Along  with  the  embellishments  of  the  luxurious  Tokugawa  era  came 
the  interest  which  proved  to  be  the  central  cause  for  the  undoing  of  this 
family's  power.  Iyeyasu  had  been  a  great  patron  of  literature,  and 
under  his  encouragement  in  the  study  of  ancient  works,  there  had  devel- 
oped a  spirit  of  research  which  awakened  in  certain  minds  deep  question- 
ings. Strangely  enough,  one  of  the  most  erudite  among  these  scholars 
was  Iyeyasu's  own  grandson,  the  Prince  of  Mito,  who  compiled  the 
Dai  Nihon  Shi  ("History  of  Japan"),  written  in  1715.  Through  the 
influence  of  this  and  other  like  researches,  the  prestige  of  the  imperial 
dynasty  was  lifted  up,  and  the  usurpation  of  the  Tokugawa  shogun  was 
seen  in  the  broad  daylight  of  truth.  The  old  emperor-worship  was 
re-instated  in  this  Shinto  revival.  The  samurai,  who  were  among  the 
most  highly  educated  men  in  the  empire,  began  to  see  that  the  first  al- 
legiance was  of  the  vassal  to  his  emperor.  To  many  became  plain  the 
evidence  that  only  in  the  succession  of  the  "Heavenly  Sovereigns"  lay 
the  safety  of  the  country, — the  divine  inheritance  which  had  for  so 
many  centuries  been  hidden  and  usurped  by  the  shoguns. 

Such  an  opportunity  for  throwing  off  Tokugawa  domination  was  not 
neglected  by  the  several  restive  lords,  those  of  Satsuma  and  Choshu  most 
especially.  They  became  advocates  of  the  revival  of  learning,  and  in 
every  way  sought  to  undermine  the  influence  of  their  hated  oppressor. 
On  the  height  of  this  disturbing  wave  came  into  view  the  fleet  of  Com- 
modore Perry  on  July  8th,  1853. 

The  story  of  modern  Japan  is  too  well  known  to  be  detailed  here, 
save  as  it  reflects  the  final  disintegration  of  the  feudal  system  and  the 
recognition  of  the  individual  citizen  as  superior  to  the  clan  as  the  unit  of 
society. 


22  Japanese  Sword-Mounts 

,  A  year  after  his  first  appearance,  Commodore  Perry  returned  to 
Yedo  Bay,  and  there  a  treaty  between  the  United  States  and  Japan  was 
signed.  Whether  the  Commodore  ever  knew  that  he  had  not  treated 
with  the  emperor  is  a  question  raised  by  W.  Griffis.1  At  any  rate,  the 
treaty  bears  the  signature  of  the  Tycoon  (Tai  Kun,  "Great  Lord"),  a 
title  taken  by  Tokugawa  Iyesada,  in  order  to  appear  as  supreme  ruler  of 
the  empire.  This  assumption  of  power  stirred  the  court  and  the  entire 
kingdom  with  indignation.  The  shogun  was  between  two  fires,  the 
deep-seated  distrust  of  him  at  home,  and  the  aggression  of  the  foreigners 
which  he  had  ignored,  and  which  he  now  knew  was  beyond  resistance. 
No  treaty  with  foreigners  was  valid  without  the  signature  of  the 
emperor,  and  this  treaty  the  emperor  had  absolutely  refused  to  sign. 
The  clash  between  Kyoto  and  Yedo  was  on.  Mistrust  of  the  foreigners, 
coupled  with  a  deep  hatred  for  the  shogun,  and  a  revivified  loyalty  for 
the  emperor  encouraged  the  leaders  of  the  clans  of  Satsuma,  Choshu, 
Mito,  and  other  dissatisfied  feudal  lords  to  arm  in  preparation  for  war 
against  the  Tokugawa  usurper  whom  they  would  reduce  to  his  proper 
place  as  vassal  to  the  one  supreme  ruler.  All  over  the  country  the  rising 
spirit  of  patriotism  was  surging  to  express  itself.  In  1863  the  Prince 
of  Choshu  precipitated  matters  by  firing  upon  the  foreign  vessels  at 
Shimonoseki.  The  shogun,  in  attempting  to  reduce  this  clan  to  order, 
realized  the  crumbling  state  of  his  power.  After  his  defeat  by  the 
Choshu  clansmen  in  1866,  Iyemochi  died,  to  be  succeeded  by  Keiki  who 
was  the  last  shogun  that  Japan  suffered.  He  was  a  weak  and  vacillating 
creature  who  held  his  office  for  only  a  year,  resigning  in  1867.  In  the 
meantime,  in  1865,  Komei,  the  emperor,  had  been  persuaded  by  his 
advisers  that  he  must  ratify  the  foreign  treaties,  after  the  foreign  pow- 
ers had  united  in  a  demand  that  the  documents  bear  the  signature  of  the 
emperor.  No  longer  could  the  shogun  stand  as  the  sole  sponsor  of 
intercourse  with  the  other  nations  of  the  world.  Komei  died  in  1867, 
and  was  succeeded  by  his  son,  Mutsuhito,  a  boy  of  sixteen  years  of 
age.  In  1868,  the  combined  troops  of  Satsuma,  Tosa,  Echizen,  Owari, 
and  Aki  possessed  the  imperial  palace  and  determined  to  restore  the 
emperor  to  his  ancient  place.  Though  instated  in  the  old  capital  of 
Kyoto,  Mutsuhito  transferred  his  palace  the  next  year  to  Yedo,  which 
from  this  time  on  was  known  as  Tokyo  ("Eastern  Capital"). 

The  shogun  made  one  last  attempt  in  1868  to  regain  his  former  pres- 
tige. Setting  out  from  Osaka  whither  he  had  retired,  with  his  retainers 
and  those  of  the  daimyo  of  Aizu  and  Kuwana,  Keiki  attempted  to 
re-enter  Kyoto  and  deliver  the  young  emperor  from  the  hands  of  his 

1  Mikado's  Empire,  Vol.  I,  p.  304. 


Introduction  23 

"bad  counselors."  At  the  battle  of  Fushimi  the  shogun  was  beaten  and 
fled  to  Yedo,  where  he  retired  into  private  life.  By  1870  the  war  was 
over  and  the  leaders  of  thought,  especially  Okubo  of  Satsuma  and  Goto 
and  Kido,  all  of  them  students  of  foreign  languages  and  ideas,  became 
advocates  for  the  Europeanization  of  the  country. 

The  four  great  clans  of  Satsuma,  Choshu,  Tosa,  and  Hizen  were  the 
first  to  realize  that  the  fiefs  held  by  feudal  lords  should  belong  to  the 
emperor,  the  supreme  head  of  the  empire.  Steps  toward  the  fall  of 
feudalism  sounded  louder  each  day.  By  1871  an  edict  was  issued  for  all 
daimyo  to  retire  to  private  life.  Their  lands  and  their  revenue  reverted 
to  the  imperial  treasury.  The  same  year  the  samurai  gave  up  their 
hereditary  pensions.  In  1876  the  privilege  of  wearing  two  swords  was 
taken  away  from  the  samurai.  Society  was  re-organized  into  three 
classes — the  nobles,  the  gentry,  and  the  commons.  Kuge  and  daimyo 
were  terms  never  to  be  used  again  with  the  same  significance.  The  army 
of  the  present  time  is  an  army  of  conscription.  The  people  of  the  nation 
have  come  into  view,  and  the  feudal  lord  is  now  what  the  peasant  is, — 
a  private  citizen,  a  true  subject  of  the  emperor,  who,  after  centuries  of 
exalted  seclusion,  has  come  out  to  be  the  visible  ruler  of  his  people. 


I.  EARLY  TYPES  OF  SWORDS— KEN  AND  TACHI 
THE  COURT  SWORD 

,  The  earliest  types  of  Japanese  sword  of  which  we  have  any  knowl- 
edge are  those  which  have  been  found  in  the  dolmens  or  tombs  of  the 
ancient  Japanese,  the  Yamato  people.  According  to  tradition,  these 
monuments  date  from  the  second  century  B.C.  to  the  eighth  century  a.d., 
when  the  influence  of  Buddhism  counteracted  this  ancient  form  of 
burial.  In  a.d.  645,  the  time  of  the  great  political  reform,  Kotoku,  the 
reigning  emperor,  issued  this  order  concerning  burials  in  dolmens :  "De- 
posit not  in  them  gold  or  silver  or  copper  or  iron,  and  let  earthenware 
objects  alone  represent  the  clay  chariots  and  straw  figures  of  antiq- 
uity. . . .  Bestow  not  jewel  shirts  or  jade  armor.  All  these  things  are 
practices  of  the  unenlightened."1 

Great  numbers  of  these  dolmens  (misasagi)  exist  in  Japan,  generally 
located  on  margins  of  the  more  important  plains  and  river  basins  and 
near  the  coasts  of  the  Inland  and  Japan  Seas.  None  are  found  in  the 
extreme  northeast  and  parts  of  the  wild  forest  and  mountain  tracts, 
which  were  evidently  held  by  the  aborigines  who  had  been  driven  back 
by  these  more  civilized  conquerors. 

The  dolmens  are  of  diverse  forms,  many  of  them  containing  stone 
or  terra-cotta  coffins ;  and  almost  all  have  yielded  objects  of  great  an- 
tiquarian interest,  such  as  pottery,  mirrors,  clay  figures,  horse  trappings, 
beads,  armor,  and  swords.2  The  sword  blades  found  therein  are  of  iron 
or  steel  forged,  not  cast,  and  are  of  various  types.  They  are  generally 
straight,  single  or  double  edged ;  some,  however,  evince  a  slight  inward 
curve,  which  H.  Joly  thinks  accidental.3  The  two-edged  swords  are 
known  as  tsurugi  or  ken,  and  are  probably  of  earlier  date  than  the  single- 
edged  sword.  Several  of  these  dugout  specimens  are  of  stone,  having 
been  made  for  burial  purposes  to  replace  the  actual  sword.  The  two- 
edged  type  of  sword  has  persisted  through  the  centuries  as  the  typical 
weapon  of  the  Buddhist  ritual,  having  the  lotus-formed  hilt  terminating 
in  a  vajra  ("thunderbolt").  It  is  to  be  seen  on  many  of  the  stone 
statues  of  Buddhist  divinities,  especially  the  delineations  of  Fudo  and  in 


*W.  Aston,  Nihongi,  Vol.  II,  p.  48. 

3  W.  Gowland,  The  Dolmens  of  Japan  and  Their  Builders  (Archaeologia, 
Vol.  LV,  pp.  439-524)  and  Metals  and  Metal  Working  in  Old  Japan  ( Transactions 
Japan  Soc,  Vol.  XIII). 

*H.  Joly,  Sword  and  Same,  pp.  9,  11. 

24 


i"V"  ~ 


wmB»TY  W  Ulfl»»  LIM*B1' 


FIELD  MUSEUM  OF  NATURAL  HISTORY. 


ANTHROPOLOGY,   VOL.   XVI,    PL.    II. 


Pommel  and  Tsuba  found  in  dolmens.    Metropolitan  museum  of  Art  (p.  27). 


Early  Types  of  Swords — Ken  and  Tachi  25 

the  hands  of  Suzano-wo  (Plate  XXXIV,  Fig.  3),  who  is  said  to  have 
originally  wrested  it  from  the  dragon's  tail.1  It  is  this  type  of  sword 
also  which  very  often  appears  engraved  on  blades,  sometimes  combined 
with  a  dragon,  or  associated  with  modified  Devanagarl  characters,  called 
Bonji,  and  quite  as  often  as  the  sole  decoration. 

The  single-edged  weapon  found  in  the  dolmens  is  generally  termed 
tachi,  though,  as  Arai  Hakuseki  points  out,  in  ancient  days  tsurugi  and 
tachi  were  terms  used  interchangeably.2  It  is  of  about  twice  the  length 
of  the  two-edged  sword.  Though  the  fittings  of  the  scabbards,  in  many 
cases,  have  become  disintegrated  from  burial  in  the  ground,  it  is  quite 
evident  that  these  were  slung  swords,  the  scabbards  bearing  two  feet 
(ashi)  through  which  passed  cords  or  chains,  whereby  they  were  sus- 
pended from  the  belt.3  On  many  of  the  clay  figures  known  as  haniwa 
and  found  in  the  same  dolmens,  there  may  be  clearly  distinguished  a 
hanging  sword,  which,  though  curved  and  short  in  comparison  to  these 
remains  mentioned  above,  more  than  likely  represents  the  type  of  sword 
found  entombed  with  the  clay  figures.4 

It  is  the  fittings  of  these  early  weapons  which  are  of  particular  inter- 
est in  this  study,  as  the  forerunners  of  the  mountings  which  appear 
upon  the  swords  of  Japan  throughout  the  ensuing  centuries.  The  pom- 
mel and  the  guard  or  tsuba  (that  disk  which  fits  between  the  hilt  and 
blade)  will  claim  our  attention  rather  than  the  blade  itself,  the  study  of 
which  may  be  set  aside  here,  as  it  has  been  exhaustively  dealt  with  in 
books  both  Japanese  and  English.3 

Among  the  excavated  specimens  referred  to,  there  are  many  types  of 
pommels,  several  of  which  may  be  studied  from  the  examples  illustrated 
on  Plates  I  and  II.  The  two  excellent  examples  in  Plate  I  are  from  the 
Brooklyn  Museum.  The  examples  on  Plate  II  are  the  property  of  the 
Metropolitan  Museum  of  Art  in  New  York.  All  of  the  dug-out  speci- 
mens are  of  copper  gilded  or  of  iron  with  a  thin  sheet  of  copper  coated 
with  gold.    The  type  in  Plate  I,  Fig.  1,  seems  to  have  been  made  as  an 

1B.  Chamberlain,  Kojiki,  p.  63.  "He  drew  the  Totsuka-no-Tsurugi  and  cut 
the  serpent  in  pieces,  and  the  River  Hi  hecame  like  a  river  of  blood.  And  when 
he  cut  the  middle  tail,  the  edge  of  the  sword  broke,  thereupon  he  split  the  flesh 
open,  and  therein  he  found  a  great  sharp  sword,  which  he  took.  It  is  the 
Kusanagi-no-tsurugi." 

'  H.  Joly,  The  Sword  and  Same,  p.  9. 

'Straps  of  printed  leather,  known  as  shobu  kawa  (from  the  design  of  iris 
shobu  and  water  lines  kawa  printed  upon  them),  were  used  later  for  the  suspen- 
sion of  slung  tachi. 

*  In  the  Kokka,  No.  46,  there  are  represented,  along  with  drawings  of  early 
swords,  two  such  figures  carrying  slung  swords. 

5  Particularly  H.  Jolv,  The  Sword  and  Same ;  and  Gilbertson,  Japanese 
Sword  Blades  (Transactions  Japan  Soc,  Vol.  IV,  pp.  186-215). 


26  Japanese  Sword-Mounts 

independent  accessory  which  fitted  into  a  hilt  metal  covered,  as  may  be 
seen  in  examples  in  the  Tokyo  Imperial  Museum  and  in  the  Metropolitan 
Museum  of  New  York,  where  scabbards  of  similar  swords  are  in  a  good 
state  of  preservation.  The  pommel  was  made  secure  by  means  of  a  peg 
which  passed  through  the  hole  in  the  centre.  In  all  probability,  this 
form  is  of  a  later  date  than  that  of  the  ring-pommel  sword  which  is  of 
one  piece,  the  hilt  being  contiguous  with  the  blade,  and  which  is  imme- 
diately reminiscent  of  the  knife  coins  of  the  Chou  period  in  China  from 
which  country  these  weapons  must  have  come.1 

The  first  copper  coin  was  cast  in  Japan,  according  to  records,  in  the 
period  'Wado  (a.d.  708-714),  which  received  its  name  from  the  discov- 
ery of  copper  in  that  country,  Wa  meaning  Yamato,  Do  being  the  char- 
acter for  copper.  It  is  therefore  likely  that  if  these  swords  with  copper 
pommels  were  not  imported  from  China  or  Korea,  they  were  probably 
made  of  metal  which  was  brought  in  from  the  outside  world.2 

The  specimen  under  discussion  is  carved  in  the  round  to  represent  a 
dragon,  the  body  forming  the  ring,  the  head  filling  the  centre  portion. 
Details  on  the  head  are  brought  out  by  fine  surface-carving.  Other 
pommels  closely  resembling  this  one  have  as  a  decoration  the  head  of  a 
phoenix  (sometimes  designated  a  sparrow)  or  a  human  head.3  The 
bird-head  has  been  traced  to  Kudara  (Korea),  which  had  borrowed  it 
from  China.  On  certain  portraits  of  Michizane,  Kamatari,  and  Iyeyasu, 
there  are  to  be  seen  long  swords  with  pommels  in  the  form  of  a  bird's 
head  without  the  ring.  These  were  a  later  outcome  of  the  ring  pom- 
mel, and  are  said  to  have  been  worn  in  hawking  expeditions  by  court 
nobles  in  olden  times.4 

The  other  pommel  in  Plate  I,  Fig.  2,  also  bears  strong  traces  of 
Chinese  or  Korean  workmanship.  Within  the  circular  opening  there 
are  chiselled  in  positive  silhouette  two  forms  conceded  to  be  dragons 
facing  one  another  and  holding  a  gem.  This  Chinese  motive  appears 
repeatedly  throughout  Japanese  art,  and  is  the  characteristic  decoration 
of  a  group  of  tsuba  known  as  Namban,  which  became  popular  in  the 
seventeenth  century,  and  which  are  dealt  with  together  with  the  meaning 
of  this  design  on  page  74.  This  early  pommel  is  joined  to  a  broad  collar 
by  which  the  whole  was  fastened  to  the  sword.  The  collar  has  upon 
it  at  the  top  and  bottom  a  narrow,  beaded  band. 

1  H.  Joly,  Sword  and  Same,  p.  18.  In  the  same  work  (on  the  plate  opposite 
p.  6)  there  are  two  ring-pommel  swords  found  in  a  dolmen  in  Higo. 

'W.  Gowlwd,  Metals  and  Metal  Working  in  Old  Japan  {Transactions 
Japan  Soc,  Vol.  XIII,  p.  29). 

*N.  Munro,  Prehistoric  Japan,  p.  413. 

4  H.  Joly,  Sword  and  Same,  p.  18. 


Early  Types  of  Swords — Ken  and  Tachi  27 

Upon  these  swords,  in  many  cases,  have  been  found  bronze  guards 
or  tsuba  of  varying  thickness,  but  always  undecorated  (Fig.  3).  Though 
oval  in  form,  they  resemble  in  part  a  bronze  guard  which  is  reproduced 
along  with  one  of  jade  carved  with  a  hydra  design,  in  B.  Laufer's 
"Jade"  (Plate  XXV),  and  which  are  accessories  to  Chinese  swords  of 
the  Han  period  (206  b.c.-a.d.  220).  This  jade  guard  is  of  interest,  not 
only  for  its  intrinsic  worth,  but  also  because  it  may  represent  a  portion 
of  the  jade  armor  referred  to  in  the  quotation  from  the  Nihongi  (p.  24). 
The  fact  that  certain  of  the  swords  found  in  these  tombs  show  strong 
marks  of  Chinese  workmanship  would  bear  out  the  statement  that  such 
jade  guards  might  also  have  been  the  possessions  of  certain  warriors 
who  had  their  precious  weapons  buried  with  them. 

There  is  found  alongside  with  the  swords  aforementioned  a  type  of 
pommel  quite  distinct  in  conception,  the  origin  of  which  is  a  matter  of 
much  discussion,  some  writers  assigning  it  to  Scythian  and  Persian  art.1 
It  is  believed  by  other  authorities,  particularly  Bashford  Dean,2  to  be 
indigenous  to  Japan,  being  conceived  as  a  development  from  the  ancient 
Ainu  sword.  It  may  be  studied  from  a  diagram  in  the  Bulletin  cited, 
where  its  development  has  been  traced  in  a  convincing  manner.  The 
same  sword  is  reproduced  on  Plate  II  in  this  publication. 

The  pommel  is  copper  gilded,  of  hollow  bulbous  form,  being  stuffed 
with  pieces  of  fibre  or  bits  of  textiles.  It  is  set  at  an  angle  to  the  hilt, 
and  is  perforated  through  the  centre  with  an  eye,  probably  used  for  the 
passage  of  a  cord  by  which  the  sword  is  suspended.  Swords  bearing 
this  type  of  pommel  are  called  kabu-tsuchi  ("turnip-mallet"),  and  some 
writers  believe  them  to  be  the  swords  referred  to  both  in  the  Kojiki  and 
Nihongi  as  "mallet-headed."  The  gilded  copper  which  covers  the  scab- 
bards of  such  swords  is  decorated  not  only  with  the  straight  lines  of 
large  dots,  characteristic  of  the  scabbards  and  hilts  on  all  of  the  swords 
from  the  dolmens,  but  there  is  often  found  a  more  beautiful  decoration 
in  the  form  of  a  delicate  scroll-like  tracery,  brought  out  by  the  use  of 
very  small  dots,  in  some  cases  punched  or  pricked. 

The  greatest  interest,  however,  in  connection  with  this  mallet-headed 
sword,  is  awakened  in  the  study  of  the  tsuba  which  generally  accompa- 
nies it.  This  guard  is  sometimes  plain,  but  more  often  it  presents  the 
first  trace  of  any  decoration  that  has  been  put  upon  this  important  ac- 
cessory (Plate  II,  Fig.  2)  .  Always  of  copper  gilded,  it  is  often  provided 
with  trapezoidal  apertures,  six,  seven,  or  eight  in  number,  which,  while 

1  H.  Joly,  The  Sword  and  Same,  p.  139;  and  Munro,  Prehistoric  Japan, 
p.  413- 

1  Bulletin  of  the  Metropolitan  Museum  of  New  York,  Vol.  XV,  p.  231. 


28  Japanese  Sword-Mounts 

lightening  the  tsuba,  are  so  placed  as  not  to  take  away  from  its  efficacy 
as  a  guard  for  the  hand.  In  shape  it  is  oval  and  pointed  at  the  base, 
resembling,  as  Joly  suggests,  the  form  of  the  jewel  (tama),  by  which 
name  it  is  sometimes  called. 

From  the  time  of  the  introduction  of  Buddhism  from  China  through 
Korea  in  a.d.  552,  according  to  tradition,  Japan  was  in  constant  com- 
munication with  China  through  the  visits  of  traders,  monks,  and  teachers. 
Her  court  was  modeled  after  that  of  the  T'ang  rulers,  and  every  branch 
of  art  reflects  the  elegance  of  the  empire,  the  decoration  of  the  sword 
serving  as  an  excellent  illustration  whereby  this  influence  may  be  traced. 

Among  the  treasures  in  the  Shosoin  at  Nara,  the  building  which 
serves  as  the  depository  of  the  art  collections  belonging  to  the  imperial 
family,  there  are  objects  dating  from  a.d.  756,  the  year  in  which  Komyo- 
Kogo,  consort  to  the  emperor,  gave  to  the  nation  the  personal  belongings 
left  by  her  husband.  Many  of  the  swords  and  other  weapons  are 
Chinese,  and  are  important  for  the  purpose  of  this  study,  since  they 
served  as  the  models  from  which  were  adopted  the  Japanese  swords  with 
their  ornate  fittings,  used  in  court  ceremonies  for  several  centuries. 

Among  the  early  specimens  of  the  court  tachi  are  two,  each  of  which 
bears  upon  the  hilt  a  ring  of  bells.  In  the  earliest  example,  a  slender 
span  of  metal  adorned  with  small  bells  is  affixed  to  either  side  of  the 
hilt,  one  end  of  which  is  secured  to  the  tsuba,  the  other  end  welded  to 
the  cap  of  the  hilt  (kashira).1  The  tsuba  on  this  particular  sword  in  the 
Shosoin  is  small,  narrow,  and  of  the  shape  generally  known  as  shitogi, — 
a  name  which  we  are  informed  was  given  to  this  type  from  its  resem- 
blance in  form  to  the  rice-cake  {shitogi)  used  in  the  Shinto  ritual.2  It 
is  hollow  and  of  gilded  bronze  decorated  with  a  finely  chased  floral  pat- 
tern. All  of  the  fittings  on  this  and  other  early  tachi  are  of  exquisite 
workmanship  and  distinctly  different  in  form  from  the  fittings  used  on 
the  fighting  swords.  The  mountings  of  the  tachi  are  as  follows :  ashi; 
tsuba;  the  cap  on  the  hilt  of  the  form  known  as  kabuto-gane  ("helmet 
metal")  ;  the  ring  on  the  hilt  for  the  passage  of  a  cord,  known  as  musubi- 
gane  ("knob  metal")  ;  the  ornaments  for  the  hilt  corresponding  to  the 
menuki,  called  tsuka-ai  ("hilt  companions")  ;  and  the  foot  of  the  scab- 
bard known  as  the  isJii-zuki.3  These  early  fittings  are  generally  adorned 
with  floral  designs.  It  is  of  interest  to  note  that  by  this  time  the  pommel 
had  taken  the  form  which  it  preserved  practically  throughout  the  f ollow- 

1  For  illustrations  of  this  type,  see  H.  Joly,  The  Sword  and  Same,  p.  14. 
aH.  Joly   (The  Sword  and  Same,  P.  45)   traces  this  form  to  the  Chinese 
guard  discussed  on  p.  27. 

8F.  Brinkley,  Japan  and  China,  Vol.  VII,  p.  211. 


gMBHOTYQFlLllfnUiaiMlff 


The  Court  Sword  29 

ing  centuries,  when  it  appears  wound  with  braid  or  covered  with  the 
skin  of  the  ray  (Japanese  same,  Rhinobatus  artnatus). 

While  one  of  these  bell-adorned  swords  in  the  Shosoin  has  the 
small  shitogi  tsuba  of  very  narrow  width  and  thus  of  no  value  as  a  pro- 
tection for  the  hand,  the  other  has  a  later  form  of  tsuba,  also  called 
shitogi.  This  type  may  be  ascribed  to  the  Fujiwara  period  (900-1199). 
This  guard  is  similar  to  the  simple  form  above  with  the  addition  of  a 
projecting  ring  on  either  side,  and  is  the  type  which  was  worn  at  court 
ceremonies  in  Kyoto  up  until  1868  (Plate  III,  Fig.  1).  The  specimen 
pictured  here,  though  of  nineteenth-century  workmanship,  is  a  faithful 
reproduction  of  this  form.  The  decoration,  however,  is  not  that  found 
on  these  early  shitogi  tsuba,  which,  as  was  said  above,  was  usually  a 
floral  scroll  design.  In  this  case  the  decoration  is  made  up  of  two  crests 
— matsukawa  bishi  ("pine  river  diamond")  and  the  tachibana,  a  species 
of  small  orange  {Citrus  tachibana)} 

While  the  shitogi  tsuba  were  suitable  for  use  at  court,  where  all  was 
peace  and  luxury,  they  would  have  offered  little  protection  for  the  war- 
riors, who  at  that  time  were  constantly  engaged  in  fierce  struggles  in  the 
north  and  east.  Undoubtedly  the  fighting  sword  must  have  been 
equipped  with  a  more  efficacious  guard  for  the  hand.  Though  much  of 
the  fighting  was  done  with  bow  and  arrow,  halberd  and  spear,  the  sword 
in  hand-to-hand  fighting  was  used  constantly.  This  fighting  weapon  was 
either  of  tachi  form,  a  slung  sword,  or  of  the  shape  known  as  katana,  a 
sword  which  was  thrust  through  the  belt,  and  whose  scabbard  was 
secured  to  the  belt  by  a  cord  (sageo)  passing  through  a  cleat  on  the 
side  of  the  scabbard,  known  as  the  kurikata.  This  same  cord  (sageo) 
was  used  to  tie  back  the  sleeves  in  time  of  combat.2 

In  many  of  the  early  scrolls  (makimono),  particularly  the  one  in  the 
Boston  Fine  Arts  Museum,  known  as  the  Keion  makimono,  the  thir- 

1  The  ground  is  covered  with  small  raised  dots,  produced  with  the  blows  of  a 
hollow  punch  and  resembling  fish-roe,  from  which  it  is  said  to  have  received  its 
name  (nanako).  Though  this  ground  decoration  was  brought  to  perfection  by 
the  artists  of  the  Goto  school  in  the  eighteenth  and  nineteenth  centuries,  nanako, 
according  to  H.  Joly  (Sword  and  Same,  p.  23)  is  met  with  on  some  of  the  early 
swords  at  Ise,  in  a  primitive  form.  There  is  also  an  example  of  this  ground  on 
a  specimen  reputed  to  be  of  eighth-century  workmanship,  in  the  Shosoin  at  Nara 
(see  Toyei  Shuko,  Vol.  I,  p.  24).  It  is  an  octagonal  mirror  covered  with  a  "thin 
silver  plate  done  in  fish-roe  (nanako)  ground  decorated  with  landscapes,  human 
figures,  flowers  and  birds."  This  process,  as  employed  by  the  masterful  artists 
of  the  Goto  school,  is  treated  more  fully  below  (p.  60). 

1  Though  the  word  katana,  which  is  also  read  to,  appears  in  the  Kojiki  (a.d. 
711),  the  style  of  the  ancient  katana  is  not  known  to  any  certainty.  H.  Joly 
(The  Sword  and  Same,  p.  41)  has  pointed  out  the  fact  that,  while  the  tachi  blade 
bears  the  signature  on  the  tang  on  the  ura  (outside  when  worn  slung  face  down- 
ward), the  katana  signature  is  inscribed  on  the  tang  on  the  omote  (outside  when 
the  edge  is  worn  upward  in  the  belt). 


30  Japanese  Sword-Mounts 

teenth-century  artist  has  pictured  warriors  equipped  with  slung  swords 
(tachi)  which  have  tsuba  of  large  size  with  strengthened  rims.  Tradi- 
tion tells  us  that  these  early  fighting  swords  had  guards  of  several  layers 
of  leather  which  were  called  neri  tsuba.  They  were  probably  stiffened 
by  lacquering  or  strengthened  with  a  layer  of  iron  in  the  centre.  On 
certain  sixteenth-century  swords,  which  are  katana,  the  guard  is  of 
many  layers  of  leather  bound  together  on  the,  edge  with  a  copper  rim.1 
Other  tsuba  of  this  early  period  had  thin  iron  plates  on  either  side, 
called  dai  seppa.  In  certain  cases  the  plates  were  punched  or  chased  with 
designs.  A  similar  decoration  may  be  seen  on  tsuba  fitted  to  ceremonial 
tachi,  of  a  shape  called  aoi,  so  named  from  four  perforations  on  the 
edge  of  the  oval  guard,  which  in  form  resemble  the  aoi  ("mallow  leaf"). 
The  decoration  on  these  early  guards  was  along  the  edge  and  on  the 
seppa  dai  or  space  surrounding  the  opening  for  the  blade.  The  aoi  form 
continued  throughout  the  centuries  as  one  of  the  favorite  shapes  for 
tsuba,  and  is  well  illustrated  by  the  specimen  (Plate  X,  Fig.  4),  which 
is  of  seventeenth-century  workmanship. 

As  a  fighting  weapon,  the  tachi  was  superseded  by  the  katana  during 
the  Ashikaga  period.  It  held  its  own  place,  however,  as  the  ceremonial 
weapon  carried  by  nobles  at  all  court  functions  in  Kyoto  for  seven 
centuries,  and  was  adorned  with  fittings  similar  in  form  to  those 
described  above  on  the  early  tachi,  the  shitogi  and  aoi  tsuba  being  the 
only  accepted  forms  for  this  formal  weapon. 

Before  departing  from  the  subject  of  the  ceremonial  court-sword 
mention  should  be  made  of  references,  occurring  in  the  works  of  many 
writers  on  Japanese  swords,  to  the  two  types  of  tachi  used  in  the  Ashi- 
kaga period  by  the  nobles  of  the  fifth  rank  and  above,  and  known  as 
shiratachi  ("white  tachi,"  meaning  "silver  mounted")  ;  and  kurozukuri 
("black  sword"),  referring  to  tachi  fitted  in  black-lacquer  mountings, 
worn  by  nobles  of  sixth  rank  and  below.  Sometimes  the  kurozukuri 
was  carried  by  an  attendant  behind  the  noble  wearing  the  shiratachi.2 
H.  Joly  adds  a  note  of  interest,  describing  tachi  of  great  length  without 
ashi,  which  were  strapped  to  the  back  by  a  cord  passing  through  the 
kurikata.  These,  he  tells  us,  were  one-handed  swords,  long  and  curved, 
which  were  usually  carried  bare  in  actual  fighting,  the  scabbard  being 
discarded.  They  were  brandished  by  the  warrior,  as  he  rode  horseback. 
This  tachi  without  ashi  is  an  important  link  between  the  slung  sword  and 
the  fighting  katana  so  admirably  balanced  for  effective  wielding. 

*E.  Gilbertson,  The  Decoration  of  Swords  and  Sword  Furniture  (Trans- 
actions Japan  Soc,  Vol.  Ill,  p.  84). 

'H.  Joly,  The  Sword  and  Same,  pp.  21,  22,  23. 


II.    THE  DAI-SHO :    THE  KATANA  AND  WAKIZASHI 

SMALL  SWORDS  AND  DAGGERS 

NOMENCLATURE  OF  THE  FITTINGS  AND  ALLOYS  USED 

FOR  MOUNTS 

The  katana,  which  was  worn  thrust  through  the  belt  and  thus  at 
hand  for  a  surprise  attack,  naturally  replaced,  as  a  fighting  weapon, 
the  tachi,  which  was  either  slung  at  the  side  or  carried  by  an  attendant 
who  followed  the  warrior.  H.  Joly1  tells  us  that  at  first  the  katana  had 
no  tsuba,  and  was  used  only  by  the  lower  classes.  When  adopted  by 
the  samurai  for  the  fighting  sword  in  the  Ashikaga  period,  it  was 
equipped  with  a  tsuba  and  paired  with  a  smaller  sword,  called  the 
wakizashi.  These  two  known  as  the  dai-sho  ("long  and  short")  were 
the  pride  of  the  samurai,  who  alone  was  privileged  to  wear  two  swords. 
The  katana,  the  longer  of  the  pair,  remained  the  accepted  fighting  sword 
throughout  the  centuries  of  the  feudal  regime,  and  was  the  weapon  for 
personal  revenge  and  the  defence  of  the  feudal  lord.  It  varied  in  length 
according  to  prescribed  rules  in  different  centuries  until  in  1670  the 
length  was  settled  upon  as  2  shaku,  8  sun,  8  fu  (88.2  cm).2 

The  shorter  sword  (wakizashi)  was  very  often  uniform  in  decoration 
with  the  katana  and  was  always  carried  in  the  belt,  whereas  it  was  cus- 
tomary when  entering  a  private  house  for  a  samurai  to  lay  his  katana 
on  the  katanakake  ("sword  rack")  near  the  entrance  as  a  matter  of 
trust  and  courtesy  to  his  host.  The  wakizashi  was  retained  in  the  belt. 
This  smaller  sword  was  generally  more  elaborately  decorated  than  the 
katana  and  was  the  weapon  dearest  to  the  heart  of  the  samurai ;  with 
il  he  might  follow  his  lord  in  death,  redeem  himself  from  the  disgrace  of 
being  killed  by  an  enemy  or  commit  suicide  in  order  to  uphold  and  pro- 
claim certain  principles  or  raise  a  protest  against  unjust  political  meas- 
ures. The  suicide  which  was  performed  with  this  sword  was  called 
harakiri  or  seppuku  (literally,  "belly-cutting").  This  form  of  self-de- 
struction probably  originated  in  the  middle  ages  when,  rather  than  be 
taken  prisoner  by  an  enemy,  the  samurai  preferred  to  take  his  own  life 
by  inflicting  the  fatal  cross-cut.  To  follow  one's  lord  in  death,  to  per- 
form harakiri  as  a  protest  against  a  moral  failure,  either  of  his  own  or 
his  master,  were  two  principles  evolved  out  of  the  religion  of  loyalty 

*The  Sword  and  Same,  p.  40. 

*  H.  Joly,  Japanese  Sword  Fittings  in  the  Naunton  Coll.,  p.  xvii. 

31 


32  Japanese  Sword-Mounts 

(bushido).  Though  forbidden  by  Tokugawa  Iyeyasu,  harakiri  persisted, 
and  is  known  to  have  been  practised  by  subjects  of  the  late  Emperor 
Mutsuhito  at  the  time  of  his  death  in  1912.  The  preceding  ceremony, 
as  well  as  the  performance  itself  with  the  final  severing  of  the  victim's 
head  by  a  faithful  friend,  is  vividly  described  by  A.  B.  Mitford  in  the 
appendix  to  his  "Tales  of  Old  Japan."  This  account  and  the  story  of 
the  Forty- Seven  Ronins  should  be  read  by  all  who  would  understand  the 
complete  absence  of  fear  in  the  face  of  death  and  the  spirit  of  loyalty 
and  self-abnegation  of  the  samurai  for  the  sake  of  his  feudal  lord.1 

A  third  sword  sometimes  carried  by  a  samurai  with  the  dai-sho  was 
the  tanto,  a  small  dagger-like  weapon  fully  mounted  and  generally  about 
3.5  cm  long.  This  was  worn  in  the  house,  and  in  some  cases  was  pre- 
ferred to  the  wakizashi  for  the  performance  of  harakiri,  for  which 
ceremony  it  was  fitted  with  a  hilt  and  scabbard  of  plain  white  wood. 
When  mounted  without  a  tsuba,  and  used  by  elderly  people  or  those  who 
had  retired  from  active  life,  the  tanto  was  called  aikuchi.  The  metezashi 
or  kwai  ken  is  another  of  the  smaller  daggers.  When  worn  by  men,  its 
customary  use  was  the  cutting  of  the  ligaments  of  armor.  When  worn 
by  a  woman,  it  was  her  ever-present  protector  against  disgrace  or  the 
means  by  which  she  could  release  or  follow  her  lord  in  death ;  for  with 
it  she  cut  the  arteries  in  her  neck,  committing  the  suicide  known  as 
jigai,  with  the  same  staunch  bravery  with  which  the  samurai  performed 
"the  happy  dispatch,"  harakiri. 

"Male  children  born  in  samurai  families  wore  swords  from  their 
earliest  day,  the  first  was  the  mamori  katana  or  charm  sword,  the  hilt 
and  scabbard  of  which  were  covered  with  brocade,  to  which  was  at- 
tached a  kinchaku  ("purse").  Later,  at  five  years  of  age,  the  boy  was 
ceremoniously  stood  upon  a  go  ban  ("go-board")  to  be  dressed  in  his 
first  hakama  ("trousers"),  and  another  sword  was  given  him.  The  fit- 
tings of  the  swords  of  reduced  dimensions  which  accompanied  the  first 
kamishimo  or  ceremonial  dress  of  the  child  in  this  gembuku  ceremony 
were,  of  course,  small;  and  they  are  sometimes  called,  from  the  asso- 
ciation with  that  dress,  kamishimo  zashi,  the  same  name  being  also 
sometimes  applied  to  the  short  sword  worn  by  the  fully  grown  man."2 

It  is  evident  in  what  importance  the  blade  must  have  been  held 
throughout  many  centuries  in  Japan,  for  upon  its  purity  and  efficacy 
hung  the  life  of  the  samurai :  it  was  indeed  "his  living  soul."    The  tests 


'A.  Mitford's  account  of  a  harakiri  ceremony  which  he  witnessed  is  repro- 
duced in  full  by  I.  Nitobe  (Bushido,  pp.  1 17-120). 

aH.  Joly,  Japanese  Sword  Fittings  of  Naunton  Collection,  p.  21. 


Nomenclature  of  the  Fittings  33 

to  which  blades  were  put  form  some  of  the  most  interesting  and  surpris- 
ing stories,  for  they  were  tried  out,  not  only  on  the  poor  unfortunate 
wayfarers,  but  made  to  cleave  cleanly  through  many  layers  of  copper.1 

"The  occupation  of  the  swordsmith  was  in  old  days  the  most  sacred 
of  crafts :  he  worked  in  priestly  garb,  and  practised  Shinto  rites  of  puri- 
fication, while  engaged  in  the  making  of  a  good  blade.  Before  his 
smithy  was  then  suspended  the  sacred  rope  of  rice-straw  (shimenawa), 
which  is  the  oldest  symbol  of  Shinto:  none  even  of  his  family  might 
enter  there,  or  speak  to  him ;  and  he  ate  only  of  food  cooked  with  holy 
fire."2  With  such  reverence  for  the  sword,  there  naturally  developed 
alongside  a  desire  to  beautify  the  hilt  and  the  scabbard. 

From  the  early  sixteenth  century  on,  the  sword  had  lavished  upon 
it  the  art  of  many  generations  of  craftsmen,  who  literally  painted  in 
metal  exquisite  designs  upon  the  various  fittings.  The  mountings  of  the 
dai-sho  have  a  different  nomenclature  from  those  of  the  tachi  (above, 
p.  28).  Of  these  the  tsuba  or  sword-guard,  because  of  the  extent  of 
its  surface,  received  the  attention  of  many  of  the  best  artists.  As 
previously  explained,  it  is  that  plaque  of  metal  which  fits  between  the 
tsuka  ("hilt")  and  the  blade,  thus  affording  a  guard  for  the  hand.  Its 
changing  form  will  be  traced  throughout  the  following  chapters.3  It 
was  securely  fastened  to  the  tang  (nakago)  by  a  collar  of  metal  called 
the  fuchi  beneath  which  were  one  or  two  washers  (seppa)  which  when 
decorated  and  large,  as  was  the  case  on  early  tsuba,  were  called  dai 
seppa.  The  fuchi  almost  always  supplements  in  decoration  the  kashira 
("pommel"),  the  cap  which  terminates  the  hilt.  On  either  side  there 
is  an  opening  through  which  passes  the  itomaki  ("wrapping  of  the  hilt"), 
thus  securing  this  fitting  tightly.  Immediately  below  the  kashira  on  the 
hilt  are  two  ornaments  known  as  menuki.  They  cover  the  mekugi 
(rivets  fastening  the  nakago  or  tang),  and  they  aid  in  gaining  a  firmer 
grip  upon  the  weapon.  Occasionally  there  are  other  menuki  which 
decorate  the  scabbard  (saya).  When  of  a  larger  size  than  the  ordinary, 
they  are  termed  kanamono  (literally,  "hardware"),  a  most  misleading 
term,  for  they  are  of  a  purely  artistic  nature  and  quality.  This  name  is 
also  applied  to  the  fittings  of  the  tobacco  pouch  (tabako  ire). 

The  triangular  opening  in  the  centre  of  the  tsuba  is  that  into  which 


1  Several    detailed    accounts    are    given    by    H.    Joly    (Sword    and    Same, 
pp.  1 17-127). 

'  L.  Hearn,  Japan:  an  Interpretation,  p.  139  (London,  1905). 

*  An   average   size    for   katana   tsuba    is    7.5  x  8   cm ;    for    wakizashi    tsuba 
6.2  x  6.6  cm ;  for  tanto  tsuba  4.5  x  6  cm. 


34  Japanese  Sword-Mounts 

fits  the  metal  band  (habaki),  that  secures  the  tang.1  In  the  case  of  a 
tsuba  for  a  wakizashi,  there  are  two  openings  on  either  side  of  this  cen- 
tral one,  called  the  riohitsu.  These  are  often  plugged  with  shakudo  or 
pewter,  indicating  their  transference  to  another  sword.  M.  de  Tressan2 
states  that  katana  tsuba  never  had  two  hitsu.  Occasionally  also  there 
are  two  round  openings  near  the  edge  of  the  guard.  These  are  known 
as  udenuki  ana,  holes  through  which  is  threaded  the  udenuki,  a  cord  or 
loop  of  braid  attached  to  the  handle  of  the  sword  to  keep  it  from  slipping 
from  the  hand. 

The  riohitsu  are  the  openings  through  which  pass  two  of  the  most 
decorative  fittings,  the  kozuka  and  the  kogai.  Each  of  these  slips 
into  a  groove  on  either  side  of  the  scabbard,  sometimes  finished  with  a 
narrow,  ornamented  band  at  the  top,  called  uragawara.  The  kozuka  is 
the  handle  of  a,  small  knife  (ko  katana),  with  a  single  edge  sometimes 
engraved  with  a  poem  or  other  motive,  such  as  a  sword  with  hilt  in  the 
shape  of  a  vajra.  The  handle,  though  affording  a  limited  field  for  the 
artist  (9.05  by  1.03  cm),  has  been  pleasingly  ornamented,  especially  by 
the  Goto  masters  (see  p.  60).  The  uses  assigned  to  this  small  weapon 
have  been  many  and  various,  some  of  which  seem  to  be  without  founda- 
tion. "It  is  only  in  a  few  cheap  novels  and  late  prints  of  theatrical  plays 
that  the  kozuka  with  its  blade  is  thrown  at  an  enemy,  and  the  origin  of 
the  tale  which  makes  of  it  and  the  kogai  kinds  of  skewers  with  which  to 
identify  the  enemy  one  has  killed  in  battle,  would  be  highly  interesting ; 
in  truth,  the  kogatana  on  the  sword  goes  back  to  hoary  antiquity,  and  it 
had  its  uses  as  a  small  knife,  say  of  a  pocket-knife."3 

The  kogai,  on  the  other  hand,  does  not  possess  a  blade,  but  is  in  the 
form  of  a  skewer,  either  of  one  piece  or  divided  lengthwise  through  the 
centre.  This  latter  form,  called  warikogai,  was  probably  used  as  a  pair 
of  chopsticks  or  as  hairpins  to  re-arrange  the  disheveled  locks  of  the 
warrior.  H.  Joly  traces  the  origin  of  the-  kogai  to  the  hairpin  and  in 
connection  with  Chinese  crowns  (kamizashi).  This  object  is  also  dec- 
orated, as  is  the  kozuka,  on  the  handle.    Together  with  the  menuki,  these 

1  Generally  the  habaki  is  a  band  of  bronze  or  copper  covered  with  gilt  and 
hatched  with  diagonal  markings  which  tend  to  "bite"  the  scabbard  and  secure 
the  sword  from  slipping.  E.  Gilbertson  (Transactions  Japan  Soc,  Vol.  I, 
p.  79)  speaks  of  two  decorated  habaki,  one  of  gold  decorations  by  Somin,  one  of 
shakudo  nanako  with  relief  of  gold  in  Got5  style.    Such  decorations  are  rare. 

'Bull,  de  la  Soc.  Franco- J 'aponaise,  Vol.  XXVIII,  p.  57. 

*  H.  Joly  and  K.  Tomita,  Japanese  Art  and  Handicraft,  p.  97.  This  is 
probably  a  rejoinder  to  remarks  made  by  A.  Doisy  (Transactions  Japan  Soc, 
Vol.  Ill,  p.  101),  or  has  reference  to  Hokusai's  drawing  reproduced  by  S.  Bing 
(Artistic  Japan.  Vol.  I,  p.  133).  An  early  dug-out  tsuba  reproduced  by  Okabe 
Kakuya  (Japanese  Sword  Guards,  p.  7)  shows  an  opening  for  a  kozuka. 


Alloys  Used  for  Mounts  35 

three  fittings  are  styled  mitokoromono  ("objects  of  three  places").  On 
the  fine  old  swords  they  were  made  by  the  same  artist  with  extreme  care. 
The  word  soroimono  is  the  term  applied  to  a  set  of  fittings  made  by  one 
artist,  which  includes  the  mitokoromono,  as  well  as  the  fucliikashira. 

In  distinguishing  the  katana  from  the  tachi,  there  has  already  been 
mentioned  the  kurigata  and  the  sageo,  by  means  of  which  the  katana  is 
secured  in  the  belt.  The  lower  end  of  the  scabbard  of  both  the  katana 
and  the  wakizashi  is  capped  by  a  decorative  fitting  called  the  kojiri, 
which  is  often  similar  to  the  fuchi,  without  the  openings  at  the  side. 
The  kojiri  is  occasionally  elongated  on  the  smaller  weapons.  A  familiar 
design  is  the  lobster,  generally  of  copper,  whose  antennae  stretch  up 
the  side  of  the  scabbard ;  or  a  common  decoration  is  a  monkey,  executed 
in  iron,  whose  long  arm  reaches  up  toward  the  other  mounts  which  may 
represent  a  persimmon  or  an  equally  desirable  object,  such  as  the  moon. 

On  all  these  fittings  there  is  evidenced  the  mastery  of  technique 
characteristic  of  the  Japanese  artist  and  craftsman.  Not  only  has  he 
employed  iron  and  steel  moulded  and  treated  so  as  to  produce  many 
varied  effects,  colors,  and  surfaces;  he  has  also  mixed  certain  precious 
metals  into  alloys  of  indescribable  shades  and  beauty,  gaining  unusual 
colors  through  pickling  processes.  These  alloys  were  used  with  the 
greatest  effectiveness  in  the  eighteenth  and  nineteenth  centuries. 

The  following  data  concerning  alloys  have  been  culled  from  the  ex- 
cellent article  by  W.  Gowland.1 

The  alloy  par  excellence  is  called  karakane  ("Chinese  metal").  It 
is  quite  distinct  from  bronze,  since  it  contains  lead  as  an  essential  con- 
stituent. Karakane  is  a  name  applied  to  a  varied  group  of  mixtures  of 
metals  of  the  copper-tin-lead  series  in  which  the  proportions  of  copper 
may  range  from  71  to  89  per  cent;  of  tin,  from  2  to  8  per  cent;  and  of 
lead,  from  5  to  15  per  cent. 

Sentoku,  a  yellow  bronze,  consists  of  copper,  tin,  and  zinc,  and  occu- 
pies an  intermediate  position  between  karakane  and  brass. 

Shakudo  is  a  purely  Japanese  alloy  which  is  of  a  dark  copper  color 
when  cast;  however,  after  being  treated  in  a  boiling  solution  (see  p.  92 
of  article  referred  to) ,  it  assumes  a  blue  black  or  violet  patina  which  is 
very  beautiful.  There  are  no  less  than  fifteen  grades  of  shakudo.  The 
presence  of  at  least  4  per  cent  of  gold  is  absolutely  essential  to  obtain  the 
finest  black  surface  with  the  violet  sheen.  The  analysis  of  a  good  quality 
of  shakudo  shows  4.16  per  cent  gold,  .08  per  cent  silver,  and  95.77  per 
cent  copper.    This  alloy  possesses  physical  properties  which  are  of  ex- 

1  Metals  and  Metal  Working  in  Old  Japan  (Transactions  of  Japan  Soc, 
Vol.  XIII,  pp.  20-100). 


36  Japanese  Sword-Mounts 

treme  importance  to  the  worker  of  metals.    It  can  be  cast  into  any  form, 
can  be  hammered  into  sheets,  and  drawn  into  wire. 

Shibuichi  is  of  equal  importance  in  ornamental  metal-work  with 
shakudo,  and  is  likewise  a  Japanese  product.  Its  name  denotes  that  it 
consists  of  one  part  of  silver  in  four  of  the  alloy ;  that  is,  one  part  of 
silver  is  alloyed  with  three  parts  of  copper.  Shibuichi  is  rather  a  general 
than  a  specific  name,  as  under  it  must  be  included  several  other  alloys, 
particularly  sambo-gin,  consisting  of  one  part  silver  and  two  parts  cop- 
per. This  combination  is  the  one  chiefly  used  for  sword-mounts.  As  is 
the  case  with  shakudo,  this  alloy  when  cast  possesses  no  beauty,  its  color 
being  similar  to  a  pale  gun-metal  or  common  bronze.  When  subjected 
to  appropriate  treatment  in  boiling  solutions,  it  assumes  a  patina  of 
charming  shades  of  gray  which  gives  it  a  unique  position  among  art 
alloys.  , 


III.    TSUBA   OF   SWORDSMITHS   AND   ARMORERS 
KANAYAMA  AND  SHINGEN  TSUBA 

,  The  subject  of  the  form  and  decoration  of  the  tsuba  of  the  Japanese 
sword,  used  between  the  periods  Gempei  (twelfth  century)  and  Ashikaga 
(fourteenth  to  sixteenth  century),  is  a  question  which  has  been  much 
discussed,  and  with  scant  result  as  to  a  definite  conclusion.  It  must  be 
remembered  that  in  that  period  occurred  the  wars  between  the  Minamoto 
and  Taira  clans,  the  Mongolian  invasion,  the  fall  of  Kamakura,  and  that 
bitter  civil  war  which  commenced  in  the  Onin  period  (1467-68),  and  out 
of  which  emerged  the  organizations  of  the  daimyo  which  became  fully 
developed  under  the  Tokugawa  shoguns.  Undoubtedly  the  fighting 
sword  used  in  these  troubled  times  was  equipped  with  a  stout  tsuba.  It 
is  generally  conceded  by  those  who  have  gone  deeply  into  this  subject, 
that  the  early  iron  guards  were  solid  and  plain,  the  work  of  swordsmiths 
and  armorers.  H.  Joly1  differentiates  between  the  tsuba  of  these  two 
groups  of  workers  in  the  following  observation :  "Authorities  agree  that 
the  swordsmiths'  guards  were  thick  and  rimless,  those  of  the  armorers, 
on  the  contrary,  thin  in  the  web  with  a  thick  rim  to  strengthen  them." 
They  were  circular,  oval,  or  after  the  fifteenth  century  of  mokko  form, 
— a  shape  which  resembles  the  aoi  tsuba,  being  oval  and  quadrilobed,  the 
four  indentations  sometimes  so  pronounced  as  to  make  the  tsuba  almost 
cruciform  and  again  in  later  times,  especially  as  used  by  Goto  Ichijo  in 
the  nineteenth  century,  so  slightly  indented  as  only  to  suggest  the  mokko 
outline.  Probably  the  work  of  the  armorers  was  of  iron,  while  that  of 
the  swordsmiths  was  likely  of  steel,  the  metal  which  they  forged  with 
exceeding  skill.  Undoubtedly  they  calculated  with  an  extreme  nicety  to 
balance  the  blade  with  a  tsuba  of  proper  lightness  or  weight  for  effective 
wielding.  Few  of  these  early  tsuba  seem  to  have  survived  the  ages, 
probably  for  the  reason  that  they  were  cast  into  the  furnace  as  the 
fashion  for  decoration  came  in,  and  the  metal  was  redeemed  for  future 
use.  The  hammer-marks  on  the  tsuba  which  remain  to  answer  the 
description  vary  from  the  mere  irregularities  of  folded  and  pounded 
iron  to  those  more  decorative  marks  left  by  the  tools  of  the  armorer. 
Simple  diaper  patterns  inlaid  in  brass,  suggestive  likewise  of  armor, 
may  also  be  of  this  period  and  the  work  of  armorers.  With  the  advent 
of  the  early  Portuguese  adventurers  in  the  sixteenth  century,  firearms 

1  Japanese  Art  and  Handicraft,  p.  98. 
37 


38  Japanese  Sword-Mounts 

were  introduced  which,  with  their  inlaid  surfaces,  augmented  to  a  great 
degree  this  style  of  decoration.  The  daimyo  were  keenly  anxious  to 
obtain  the  weapons  of  the  foreigners ;  for  the  authority  of  the  Ashikaga 
shoguns  had  been  cast  off,  and  each  chief  was  striving  for  local 
supremacy.1 

In  the  following  illustrations  four  tsuba  are  reproduced  which  pic- 
ture certain  of  these  foregoing  types.  They  may  be  attributed  to  the 
fifteenth  and  sixteenth  century  makers,  all  are  unsigned,  for  it  was  not 
until  the  seventeenth  century  that  it  became  customary  to  inscribe  the 
name  on  the  seppa  dai.  The  first  is  a  large  circular  tsuba  of  black  iron 
without  any  riohitsu  (Plate  III,  Fig.  2).  The  surface  is  covered  with 
hammer-marks  characteristic  of  the  blows  left  by  armorer's  tools.  En- 
circling the  edge  are  crude  forms  suggesting  plum-blossoms,  while  the 
centre  of  the  tsuba  has  upon  it  two  concentric  rows  of  marks  resembling 
fallen  petals.  , 

The  three  other  tsuba  are  decorated  with  inlay  of  two  distinct  kinds. 
The  design  on  Fig.  3  is  brought  out  by  the  process  known  as  honsogan 
("true  inlay").  There  is  first  cut  into  the  metal  foundation  a  groove 
or  patch,  as  the  case  may  be,  in  the  form  of  the  decoration  to  be  inlaid. 
Into  this  is  hammered  the  contrasting  metal.  In  later  work,  such  as  was 
brought  to  perfection  by  the  Nara  and  Hamano  workers,  the  groove  was 
narrower  at  the  top  than  the  base,  so  that  when  the  inlay  was  hammered 
in,  it  was  thus  secured  tightly.  When  honsogan  is  flat,  it  is  known  as 
hirazogan;  when  projecting  above  the  surface,  it  is  called  takasogan. 
Brass  wire  is  the  material  inlaid  on  each  of  these  guards,  and  though 
it  unfortunately  has  come  loose  or  entirely  disappeared  in  spots,  the 
design  may  clearly  be  traced  on  both  tsuba.  The  first  is  a  large  circular 
guard,  both  sides  of  which  are  covered,  save  the  space  immediately  sur- 
rounding the  opening  for  the  blade,  with  a  diaper  pattern  suggestive  of 
bamboo  weaving,  known  as  kago-ami  ("basket  weave").  The  second, 
also  of  iron,  is  of  mokko  form,  and  has  a  perforation  for  the  insertion 
of  a  kozuka  (Plate  IV,  Fig.  1).  The  obverse  of  this  guard  is  covered 
with  a  design  known  as  the  "Korean  wave  pattern,"  more  properly  a 
Chinese  diaper  pattern  representing  waves.  At  the  right  floats  a  peony 
blossom  from  which  flames  issue,  an  interesting  motive,  but  one  whose 
meaning  is  obscure.  The  peony  (botan)  was  brought  over  to  Japan 
from  China,  where  it  bears  the  name  fu  kuci  hua  ("flower  of  riches 
and  honor").  Possibly  the  flames  suggest  fame,  as  the  peony  is  the 
"king  of  flowers."    On  the  reverse  of  the  same  tsuba,  two  diaper  pat- 

1 W.  Griffis,  Mikado's  Empire,  p.  248. 


FIELD  MUSEUM  OF  NATURAL  HISTORY. 


ANTHROPOLOGY,  VOL.  XVI,   PL.   IV. 


1,  Tsuba  with  Decoration  in  honzugan  (p.  38)  and  2,  Nunome-zogan  (p.  39). 


g^fQISnY  OF  ui«k»^  LianAUt 


HoNZOGAN    AND    NUNOME-ZOGAN  39 

terns  are  inlaid  on  the  field  divided  longitudinally.  On  the  left  is  a 
design  of  tendrils,  termed  karakusa;  on  the  right,  the  swastika  (manji) 
fret, — a  swastika  combined  with  a  key  pattern.  Though  this  mystic 
diagram  may  have  been  used  as  a  decoration  prior  to  the  introduction  of 
Buddhism  from  China,  in  a.d.  552,  it  now  has  the  same  significance  in 
Japan  as  in  China :  it  is  regarded  as  the  symbol  of  Buddha's  heart,  as 
well  as  the  mark  for  "ten  thousand." 

Strongly  resembling  these  two  tsuba  in  appearance  is  Fig.  2  in 
Plate  IV,  presumably  of  the  same  period.  The  design,  however,  is 
brought  out  in  silver  and  inlaid  by  a  process  distinctly  different  from 
honed gan,  known  as  nunome-sogan.  Kunomc  means  "cloth  meshes," 
and  describes  a  cross-hatching  which  is  cut  or  filed  over  the  field  to  be 
inlaid,  making  an  effect  like  the  texture  of  weaving.  On  this  roughened 
surface  is  hammered  the  contrasting  metal,  which  adheres  to  the  teeth- 
like  projections  raised  by  the  cross-hatching.  In  the  case  of  the  delicate 
design,  such  as  the  three  diaper  patterns  on  the  tsuba  under  considera- 
tion, the  ground  must  have  been  prepared  with  great  care,  lest  the  filings 
extend  beyond  the  surface  to  be  inlaid.  This  tsuba  of  brown  iron  is 
slightly  oval,  with  an  opening  for  kosuka  and  long  slender  perforations 
on  either  side,  probably  made  to  lessen  the  weight.  The  kago-ami 
diaper  is  again  used,  this  time  in  combination  with  a  star-like  diaper, 
and  a  third  all-over  pattern  called  the  shippo  tsunagi  no  wuchimi  hana- 
bishi,  that  is  to  say,  a  hanabisJii  ("flower-diamond")  within  a  con- 
nected shippo.  The  shippo,  of  Indian-Buddhistic  origin,  are  the  seven 
precious  things,  generally  enumerated  as  gold,  silver,  emerald,  coral, 
agate,  crystal,  and  pearl.  These  materials  were  used  as  inlay  on  many 
objects,  and  thus  the  name  shippo  has  come  to  describe  the  cloisonne 
enamel  in  Japan.1  The  shippo  form  in  this  design  is  likely  the  pearl. 
The  "hana-bishi  within  a  connected  shippo"  is  one  of  the  takaramono 
("precious  things")  associated  with  the  Seven  Gods  of  Luck  (Shichi- 
fukujin),  who  travel  in  the  takarabune  ("treasure-ship")  loaded  with 
these  precious  objects.  The  hana  ("flower")  used  as  the  centre  of  the 
design  is  the  blossom  of  the  water-caltrop  {Trapa  incisa,  Japanese  hishi), 
which  bears  a  prism-shaped  nut ;  hence  anything  in  the  shape  of  a  prism 
is  styled  hishi-gata  ("diamond-shaped").2  This  diaper  pattern  appears 
in  lacquer,  brocade,  pottery,  and  enamel,  and  was  adopted  as  a  crest  by 
Matsura,  daimyo  of  Katsumoto.3 

'See  J.  Bowes,  Notes  on  Shippo ;  also  C.  Salwey,  Japanese  Enamels  Ancient 
and  Modern  (Transactions  Japan  Soc,  Vol.  VII,  pp.  228-247). 
'J.  Bowes,  Japanese  Pottery,  p.  472. 
*  H.  Strohl,  Japanisches  Wappenbuch  Nihon  Moncho,  p.  132. 


40  Japanese  Sword-Mounts 

Contemporaneous,  if  not  of  earlier  date,  are  the  tsuba  reproduced  in 
Plates  V  and  VI.  They  are  of  iron  and  covered  with  a  patina  of  fine 
smoothness.  While  age  has  undoubtedly  done  much  to  produce  this 
"skin,"  it  is  more  than  likely  that  one  of  the  several  methods  known  as 
sabi-dashikata  ("rust-summoning  process")  was  applied  to  some  of 
these  tsuba.  The  old  iron  workers  had  recipes  for  producing  patina, 
which  they  guarded  with  great  secrecy  and  kept  among  their  hid  en 
("secret  processes")  handed  down  from  generation  to  generation.  Some 
of  these  methods  have  been  outlined  in  published  accounts,  but  almost  all 
serious  searchers  after  authentic  information  on  tsuba  agree  that  these 
same  accounts  are  intended  to  deceive  rather  than  instruct.  The  one 
quoted  by  F.  Brinkley1  is  typical  and  full  of  quaint  fancies.  Once  the 
patina  has  become  scratched  or  rubbed,  the  tsuba  loses  much  of  its 
value ;  for  it  is  the  color  and  "feel"  of  the  iron,  as  well  as  the  handling 
and  design,  which  combine  to  make  the  artistic  appeal  of  these  tsuba. 
It  is  very  difficult  to  restore  a  patina  that  has  become  harmed.  From  a 
personal  letter  of  Joly,  who  spent  much  of  his  time  on  the  study  of 
Japanese  sword-mounts,  and  who  left  the  most  valuable  information 
which  we  have  concerning  them,  is  quoted  the  following  paragraph: — 
,  "The  problem  of  patinating  iron  and  Japanese  alloys  is  far  from 
simple ;  I  have  worked  at  it  for  more  years  than  I  care  to  remember,  and 
have  collected  many  recipes,  some  of  which  do  work. — In  years  gone  by 
I  can  still  remember  a  dozen  or  so  bottles  of  pickling  solutions  gathering 
dust  on  the  shelves  of  my  laboratory,  some  of  which  worked  on  shakudo, 
others  on  shibuichi,  which  one  day  were  all  turned  into  a  larger  bottle, 
and  the  resulting  mess,  the  composition  of  which  is  wholly  unknown, 
does  patinate  anything  it  is  applied  to. — Thank  goodness  I  have  enough 
of  it  to  last  as  long  as  I  shall,  unless  the  bottle  gets  broken !" 

The  "resulting  mess"  was  never  analyzed,  and  unfortunately  Mr. 
Joly's  valuable  researches  were  brought  to  a  close  by  his  premature 
death  in  1920. 

In  the  laboratories  of  Field  Museum  of  Natural  History,  H.  W. 
Nichols,  Associate  Curator  in  the  Department  of  Geology,  has  made 
interesting  experiments  in  patinating  iron  and  steel,  having  reduced  the 
elaborate  and  sometimes  unattainable  ingredients  of  the  Japanese  recipes 
to  certain  chemical  substitutes  which  combine  to  produce  like  effects.  It 
is  hoped  that  to  those  desirous  of  restoring  patina  who  have  read  in 
despair  of  "the  clay  from  a  certain  Kyoto  cemetery"  and  "the  charcoal 
ashes  over  which  eels  have  been  roasted,"  and  such  Japanese  fancies 

1  Japan  and  China,  Vol.  VII,  p.  238. 


FIELD  MUSEUM  OF  NATURAL  HISTORY. 


ANTHROPOLOGY,   VOL.   XVI.   PL.  V. 


Iron  Tsuba  of  Early  period  (pp.  40-41). 


fflVBsmroFiuiwisLuuuOT 


eo    H 


g^esPtfiuw^Lyia.!' 


Kanayama  Tsuba*  41 

necessary  to  produce  patina,  the  account  in  the  Appendix  (p.  163)  will 
prove  useful. 

The  guard  reproduced  in  Plate  V,  Fig.  1,  is  of  characteristic  early 
simplicity,  and  covered  with  a  patina  which  gives  a  wax-like  effect  to 
the  iron.  Of  medium  thickness  and  circular,  the  tsuba  is  decorated  with 
two  chiselled  grooves,  bounded  by  fine  lines.  The  holes  for  kozuka  and 
kogai  are  plugged  with  shakudo. 

An  exceptional  example  of  early  iron  work,  giving  forth  when 
struck  a  clear  bell-like  sound,  is  to  be  seen  in  Plate  V,  Fig.  2.  It  is  of 
brown  iron  with  a  smooth  patina,  and  in  form  suggests  a  six-petaled 
flower.  Each  lobe  is  delicately  outlined  with  a  finely  cut  line  terminating 
in  a  scroll.  A  deep  groove  is  cut  in  the  centre,  probably  with  the  pur- 
pose of  lessening  the  weight.  The  foldings  of  the  iron  can  be  clearly 
seen  when  examining  the  guard  in  a  good  light. 

Of  the  type  of  tsuba  termed  Kanayama,  very  few  examples  have 
been  pictured  in  the  various  works  on  sword-fittings.  M.  de  Tressan,1 
in  his  series  of  articles  "L'Evolution  de  la  garde  de  sabre  japonaise," 
speaks  of  certain  tsuba  which  he  ascribes  to  the  thirteenth  and  four- 
teenth century  as  "rather  large,  very  thin,  circular,  and  frequently 
with  a  rounded  flange.  The  surface,  while  not  polished,  does  not  have 
the  depressions  which  are  to  be  seen  on  sixteenth-century  pieces.  The 
patina  is  dark,  and  the  decoration  consists  of  sober  negative  silhouettes 
(kage  zukashi),  representing  radishes,  cloves,  plum-blossoms,  and  the 
like,  conventionalized."  In  a  later  article,  the  same  author2  characterizes 
certain  tsuba  as  "Kanayama  in  Yamashiro,  which  from  the  end  of  the 
sixteenth  century  produced  silhouettes,  often  with  the  motive  of  the 
calabash,  dear  to  Hideyoshi  (No.  1272  of  the  collection  of  Gillot;  a 
thin  guard  of  large  size,  with  projecting  flange  decorated  in  a  negative 
silhouette  of  calabash  flowers  and  crests)." 

This  last  description  accords  well  with  the  Kanayama  tsuba  selected 
for  illustration  by  Okabe  Kakuya  in  his  catalogue  of  sword-guards  ex- 
hibited at  the  Fine  Arts  Museum,  Boston,  in  1908.  The  date  attributed 
to  that  specimen  in  the  sixteenth  century.  The  name  Kanayama  has  met 
with  wide  discussion ;  even  Joly  seemed  embarrassed  when  in  his  review 

^Bull.  de  la  Soc.  Franco-Jap.,  Vols.  XVIII,  XIX,  XX,  XXII,  XXV,  XXVI, 
XXVII. 

'La  garde  de  sabre  japonaise  (Ostasiatische  Zeitschrift,  Vol.  I,  p.  296). 
According  to  Griffis  (Mikado's  Empire,  p.  238),  "Hideyoshi's  banner  consisted 
of  a  cluster  of  gourds.  At  first  it  was  a  single  gourd.  After  each  battle  another 
was  added  until  at  last  it  became  an  imposing  sheaf.  The  standard  bearer  car- 
ried aloft  at  the  head  of  the  columns  a  golden  representation  of  the  original 
model,  and  wherever  Hideyoshi's  banner  moved,  there  was  the  centre  of  victory." 


Of-z  Japanese  Sword-Mounts 

of  M.  de  Tressan's  articles1  he  asked  the  following  question:  "Does 
any  one  know  definitely  what  was  called  Kanayama  tsuba  in  the  seven- 
teenth or  eighteenth  centuries,  or  are  we  all  groping  in  the  dark  ?" 

Though  the  first  specimen  on  Plate  VI  might  be  labeled  by  some 
"Kanayama,"  it  seems  wiser  and  less  dogmatic  to  do  as  others  have  done, 
and  group  similar  early  pieces  under  "archaic  tsuba."  Undoubtedly 
such  guards  are  excellent  representations  of  the  earliest  tsuba  with  per- 
forated designs,  which  were  evidently  applied  with  an  idea  of  decoration. 
Other  earlier  perforations  were  not  of  a  preconceived,  decorative  char- 
acter, but  were  mainly  made  to  lessen  the  weight. 

This  tsuba  (Plate  VI,  Fig.  i),  presumably  of  sixteenth-century 
workmanship,  accords  in  detail  with  De  Tressan's  first  description  of 
Kanayama  tsuba  cited  above.  It  is  large,  thin,  of  brown  iron,  and  per- 
forated with  designs  representing  a  plum-blossom  and  three  cloves.  The 
plum  (umc),  symbol  of  longevity,  is  an  ever  present  motive  in  Japanese 
art.  The  clove  (choji)  is  more  unusual,  though  often  seen  with  the 
takaramono,  where  it  has  replaced  the  rhinoceros-horn  (chiieh)  of  the 
Chinese  in  their  series  of  precious  objects,  known  as  the  pa  pao.  In 
Japan,  the  clove  is  used  as  a  perfume  and  purifier,  being  steeped  in  hot 
water  above  the  charcoal  brazier  known  as  the  choji-buro.  The  clove 
has  been  adopted  as  the  motive  for  several  crests,  among  these  that  of 
Matsudaira,  daimyo  of  Kameyama ;  but  it  is  hardly  safe  to  say  that  this 
design  here  is  a  primitive  form  of  crest  and  thus  the  insignia  for  any 
particular  family,  though  such  a  theory  is  tenable. 

Another  tsuba  reproduced  in  Plate  VI,  Fig.  2,  is  also  of  brown  iron 
and  decorated  with  a  perforated  design.  This  guard  is  likely  the  work 
of  an  armorer  of  the  Myochin  family  (p.  50),  whose  early  members 
made  tsuba  with  raised  rims,  and  who  occasionally  added  slight  perfora- 
tions. While  very  thin  in  the  web,  the  edge  is  rounded  and  heavy.  The 
only  decoration  is  a  conch-shell  (hora)  in  openwork,  which  is  one  of 
the  most  important  of  the  "eight  happy  omens"  (pa  chi  hsiang),  which 
are  among  the  signs  to  be  seen  on  the  Buddha's  feet.  The  hora  signal- 
izes the  voice  of  Buddha.  The  travelling  Buddhist  priests  of  Japan, 
belonging  to  the  Shugendo  sect  and  called  Yamabushi  ("mountain  war- 
riors"), carried  along  with  their  travelling  box,  rosary,  and  sword,  a 
trumpet  made  of  a  conch-shell,  such  as  was  used  by  chieftains.  As  is 
mentioned  in  the  introduction,  these  warrior  priests  became  thoroughly 
militarized  in  the  fourteenth  and  fifteenth  centuries;  and,  living  in  the 
monastery  of  Hiyeizan,  they  were  a  constant  menace  to  the  peace  of  the 

1  Ostasiatische  Zeitschrift,  Vol.  I,  p.  369. 


The  Tomoye  43 

capital.  They  were  well  stocked  with  weapons,  and  it  is  not  improbable 
that  this  tsuba  with  the  significant  conch  was  made  to  adorn  one  of  their 
swords.  , 

Skillfully  cut  in  negative  silhouette  is  the  dragon-fly,  to  be  seen  in 
Fig.  3  of  Plate  VI.  The  tsuba  is  thin,  of  dark  brown  iron,  and  resembles 
the  work  of  the  armorers.  A  larger  guard  with  rounded  rim,  but  with 
a  similar  design  and  like  treatment  is  attributed  by  P.  Vautier1  to  the 
Myochin  workers  of  the  fourteenth  or  fifteenth  century.  This  motive, 
the  dragon-fly  (akitsu),  is  generally  accepted  as  the  symbol  of  the  king- 
dom of  Japan,  and  the  origin  of  the  idea  is  traced  to  the  legend  recounted 
in  the  Kojiki  and  Nihongi  of  the  Emperor  Jimmu's  view  of  the  island 
from  a  mountain  top.  He  is  said  to  have  thought  the  kingdom  looked 
like  a  dragon-fly  touching  its  tail  with  its  mouth.  From  this  it  received 
its  name  Akitsu-shima.  Chamberlain,2  in  his  translation  of  the 
Kojiki,  disagrees,  however,  with  this  interpretation  of  the  word  akitsu. 

The  design  which  is  chiselled  in  openwork  on  a  fourth  tsuba  of  this 
period  is  one  of  great  antiquity  and  one  whose  significance  has  caused 
much  ink  to  flow  (Plate  VI,  Fig.  4).  It  consists  of  two  comma-shaped 
figures  called  futatsu  ("two")  tomoye.  When  three  such  motives  are 
grouped  together,  the  design  is  known  as  mitsu  ("three")  tomoye  (see 
Plate  X,  Fig.  1).  The  tomoye  is  almost  identical  in  shape  with  the 
magatama,  prehistoric  ornaments  cut  from  various  stones  and  found  in 
the  dolmens  along  with  tubular  and  round  beads.  Whether  the  tomoye 
represents  a  magatama  is  a  question  worthy  of  consideration.  When  in 
the  form  of  the  futatsu-tomoye ,  this  design  is  similar  to  the  Chinese 
diagram  yang  and  yin,  representing  the  masculine  and  feminine  princi- 
ples of  nature.  The  mitsu-tomoye  is  thought  by  some  to  represent  these 
two  principles  plus  the  creative  element.  This  interpretation  seems 
reasonable,  especially  when  the  design  is  applied  to  the  mallet  of  the  God 
of  Wealth,  Daikoku  (Plate  LV,  Fig.  3),  which,  when  struck,  is  em- 
powered to  create  great  riches.  But  as  the  same  design  appears  on  the 
drums  of  the  Thunder  God,  Raiden  (Plate  XXXI,  Fig.  3),  on  ridge- 
poles and  tiles  of  roofs,  one  is  inclined  to  lay  particular  stress  on  the 
remarks  of  M.  de  Visser.3  "The  more  I  reflect  upon  it,  the  more  I  feel 
inclined  to  accept  Hirth's  explanation  of  the  mitsu-tomoe  and  futatsu- 
tomoe  ('two  commas')  as  the  rolling  thunder.  Its  frequent  appearance 
on  lanterns,  flags,  tiles,  and  in  olden  times,  on  the  tomo  or  leather  shield 

*Japanische  Stichblatter  und  Schwertzieraten,  Sammlung  G.  Oeder,  p.  2, 
No.  3. 

'  Transactions  Japan  Soc,  Vol.  I,  pp.  13  and  135. 
*  The  Dragon  in  China  and  Japan,  p.  105. 


44  Japanese  Sword-Mounts 

worn  around  the  wrist  by  archers,  and  its  frequent  use  as  a  badge  of 
arms  may  be  explained  by  its  magic  power,  averting  evil  and,  in  some 
cases,  bringing  fertilizing  rains.  I  formerly  believed  it  to  be  the  yang 
and  yin  symbol,  the  third  comma  being  the  t'ai  kih  (the  primordium, 
from  which  yang  and  yin  emanate) .  This  primordium,  which  in  China 
is  represented  by  the  whole  figure,  should  by  mistake  have  been  repre- 
sented by  the  Japanese  by  means  of  a  third  comma.  Yang  and  yin,  light 
and  darkness,  however,  are  represented  by  one  white  and  one  black  fig- 
ure, somewhat  resembling  commas  and  forming  together  a  circle.  It 
would  be  very  strange  if  the  ancient  Japanese,  who  closely  imitated 
the  Chinese  models,  had  altered  this  symbol  in  such  a  way  that  its  funda- 
mental meaning  got  lost ;  for  replacing  the  two  white  and  black  commas 
with  two  or  three  black  ones  would  have  had  this  effect.  Moreover,  in 
Japanese  divination,  based  on  the  Chinese  diagrams,  the  original  Chinese 
symbol  of  yang  and  yin  is  always  used  and  placed  in  the  midst  of  the 
eight  diagrams.  Thus  the  futatsu-tomoe  and  mitsu-tomoe  are  apparently 
quite  different  from  this  symbol,  and  Hirth  rightly  identifies  them  with 
the  ancient  Chinese  spiral,  representing  thunder.  Moreover,  I  found  the 
same  explanation  of  the  tomoe  in  the  Japanese  work  Shiojiri,  which 
gives  a  picture  of  two  kinds  of  spirals,  ancient  symbols  of  thunder  and 
clouds.  Finally,  on  Japanese  prints  the  dragon  is  often  accompanied  by 
a  huge  spiral,  representing  the  thunderstorm  caused  by  him." 

One  should  add  the  observations  of  A.  J.  Koop,1  "One  of  the  most 
fascinating  motives  is  the  tornoye  or  comma-shape,  upon  the  origin, 
significance,  and  etymology  of  which  much  has  been  written.  In  blazon- 
ing a  mon  founded  upon  the  tomoye,  it  is  important  to  notice  the  direc- 
tion taken  by  the  tail  of  the  comma ;  when  this  is  clockwise,  the  blazonry 
is  migi-domoye  or  'right  comma'  and  conversely  hidari-domoye  ('left 
comma').  The  hidari  mitsu  domoye  ('three  left  commas')  is  found  as 
the  mon  of  several  Shinto  shrines.  Five  daimyo  families  also  bore  the 
three  left-hand  commas  as  their  chief  mon,  and  we  find  it  used  by  sev- 
eral other  prominent  families,  notably  the  Sho,  who  have  in  their  time 
held  the  kingship  of  the  Luchu  Archipelago.  Two  right-hand  commas 
forming  a  circle,  the  heads  side  by  side,  compose  the  mon  which  is 
blazoned  as  migi-futatsu  domoye,  and  serves  as  an  identification  mark 
in  representations  of  the  most  popular  figure  in  recent  Japanese  history 
— Oishi  Yoshio  (or  Kuranosuke)  whose  noble  leadership  of  the  band 
of  forty-seven  faithful  samurai  is  the  subject  of  numberless  novels, 
plays,  and  sets  of  prints." 

1  Construction  and  Blazonry  of  Mon  {Transactions  Japan  Soc,  Vol.  IX, 
P-  305). 


FIELD  MUSEUM  OF  NATURAL  HISTORY. 


ANTHROPOLOGY,  VOL.   XVI,   PL.  VII. 


TWO  TYPES  OF  SHINGEN  TSUBA  (p.  45). 


flUMERSmr  OF  Illinois  imw 


*.    -v  ..v  ~--.^v 


Shingen  Tsuba  45 

An  unusual  group  of  tsuba  popular  in  the  late  sixteenth  century  and 
afterwards  is  made  up  of  those  guards  known  as  Shingen  tsuba,  a  name 
which  was  derived  from  a  sixteenth-century  warrior,  Takeda  Shingen 
(Takeda  Harunobu,  1521-73),  who  is  said  to  have  preferred  this  style 
of  guard,  as  it  combined  strength  and  lightness.  Under  the  category 
"Shingen,"  four  different  types  are  generally  listed,  though  a  fifth  ap- 
pears in  the  drawing  in  the  Boston  Catalogue  of  Okabe  Kakuya  "Jap- 
anese Sword  Guards"  (p.  21).  It  is  square,  that  form  which  is  said  to 
have  been  used  in  Ashikaga  days  for  scaling  walls,  the  sword  having 
been  set  up  as  a  step.  Another  virtue,  which  has  been  pointed  out,  is 
that  the  square  tsuba  prevented  the  sword  from  rolling  when  laid  down. 
The  following  descriptions  include,  however,  the  Shingen  tsuba  usually 
met  with. 

1.  So-called  Mukade  ("centipede")  tsuba  are  made  of  iron  in 
which  a  centipede  is  inlaid  in  brass  or  copper  wire.  Mukade  tsuba  of 
Myochin  and  Umetada  workmanship  have  been  found  with  the  in- 
scription, "Made  to  the  taste  of  Takeda  Shingen." 

2.  There  are  those  of  solid  iron,  with  neat  centres  of  brass,  to  the 
edges  of  which  is  affixed  a  weaving  of  brass  and  copper  wires  which  is 
bound  to  the  foundation  disk  by  a  rim,  usually  decorated  simply. 

3.  Another  type  is  of  solid  iron,  bored  at  intervals  and  laced  with 
braided  or  twisted  wires  of  copper  and  brass. 

4.  The  fourth  type  is  a  chrysanthemoid  form,  chiselled  in  open 
work  and  laced  or  woven  tightly  with  copper  and  brass  wire. 

The  second  and  third  types  appear  on  Plate  VII.  Fig.  1  is  circular 
with  a  centre  of  brass  covered  with  hammer-marks  similar  to  those  on 
the  tsuba  in  Plate  III,  Fig.  2.  To  this  brass  disk  is  affixed  a  core  of 
woven  wires  of  copper  and  brass,  covering  over  a  thin  iron  field.  The 
whole  is  bounded  by  a  rim  of  shibuichi  engraved  to  represent  a  rope. 
This  specimen,  though  probably  of  seventeenth  or  eighteenth  century 
workmanship,  is  an  excellent  example  of  this  type  of  Shingen  tsuba. 
The  other  guard  (Plate  VII,  Fig.  2)  is  of  mokko  form  and  entirely  of 
iron  with  a  dark  brown  patina.  The  edge  is  outlined  in  a  relief  of  two 
wires  of  brass,  one  plain,  the  other  twisted.  Within  the  field  are  two 
more  reliefs  of  wire  combinations  which  accentuate  the  mokkd  outline, 
and  which  appear  to  be  held  in  place  by  the  passage  of  wires  through 
sixteen  drilled  openings.  Through  the  outer  eight  openings  wires  pass 
over  the  edge  of  the  guard  crossing  at  intervals.  This  tsuba  may  safely 
be  ascribed  to  the  sixteenth  or  seventeenth  century. 


IV.    KANEIYE  AND  THE  MYOCHIN  FAMILY 

Under  the  Ashikaga  shoguns  (i  338-1 573)  the  power  of  the  military 
governors  (shugo)  increased  to  such  an  extent  that  there  was  established 
between  them  and  their  retainers  djito  (literally,  "chief  of  the  land")  a 
vassalage  which  severed  the  direct  communication  between  the  latter  and 
the  shogun  as  it  had  existed  in  former  times.  At  the  same  time  the 
shugo  were  not  strong  enough  to  completely  control  these  minor  land- 
holders. Insurrections  between  them  occurred  constantly,  and  the 
frontier  lines  were  continually  being  disputed  and  shifted.  Japan  was 
literally  torn  asunder  into  a  number  of  semi-independent  bodies,  with 
masters  ever-changing.1 

Under  these  circumstances  the  sword  took  on  an  added  importance. 
In  the  various  provinces,  schools  of  metal-workers  developed  who 
devoted  their  entire  time  toward  the  making  of  armor  and  especially  to- 
ward the  perfecting  and  embellishing  of  the  sword  for  the  resident 
feudal  lords.  In  spite  of  the  dark  aspect  of  these  times,  great  artists 
arose,  such  as  the  landscape  painter  Sesshu  and  the  master  worker  in 
metal,  Kaneiye,  both  of  whom  bear  witness  to  the  statement  that  the 
arts,  in  the  Ashikaga  period,  advanced  to  a  remarkable  degree.  There 
occurred  during  those  years  a  renaissance  of  the  Chinese  influence  which 
left  its  traces  in  all  branches  of  art;  for  Ashikaga  Yoshimitsu  and 
Ashikaga  Yoshimasa  are  among  the  great  patrons  who  worked  inten- 
sively for  their  nation's  growth  along  cultural  lines. 

Although  Goto  Yujo  (1435  or  1440- 15 12),  whose  work  is  discussed 
in  a  following  chapter,  is  conceded  to  have  been  the  originator  of  work- 
ing in  relief  as  a  form  of  decorative  art  in  metal,  to  Kaneiye  must  be 
granted  the  place  as  first  having  applied  upon  iron  tsuba  the  processes 
which  Goto  Yujo  used  only  upon  the  smaller  sword  ornaments.  The 
date  of  the  first  Kaneiye  is  one  of  the  much  debated  questions  in  the 
involved  study  of  sword-guards.  M.  de  Tressan,2  in  his  chapter  on 
Kaneiye,  after  discussing  the  opinions  of  Hayashi,  Hara,  and  other 
authorities,  has  come  to  the  conclusion  that  he  must  have  flourished 
during  the  period  1480- 1530,  between  the  time  of  Goto  Yujo  and 
Nobuiye  I,  of  whom  some  would  make  him  a  pupil.   Okabe  Kakuya3 

1 K.  Hara,  Introduction  to  the  History  of  Japan,  pp.  216-217. 
*  L'fivolution   de   la   garde   de   sabre   japonaise    (Bull,   de   la   Soc.   Franc 0- 
Japonaise,  Vols.  XIX-XX,  p.  20). 
'Japanese  Sword  Guards,  p.  46. 

46 


Kaneiye  47 

also  places  him  in  the  sixteenth  century ;  and  H.  Joly,  in  the  last  of  his 
excellent  catalogues  on  Japanese  tsuba,  says,  "The  name  Kaneiye  has 
been  adopted  by  several  craftsmen,  the  first  of  whom  lived  at  the  end  of 
the  Ashikaga  period,  and  is  usually  termed  Oshodai  Kaneiye  (Mr.  Aki- 
yama  says  that  his  work  was  an  improvement  on  the  Onin  tsuba)  ;  others 
Shodai  and  Mei  jin  Shodai,  followed  him  closely,  and  others  again 
imitated  him,  either  before  1600  or  afterwards."1  Lastly,  as  to  the  date 
of  the  founding  of  the  Kaneiye  school,  Bashford  Dean,2  in  his  lumin- 
ous chapter  on  Kaneiye,  observes,  "The  first  generation  appears  to 
have  flourished  during  the  last  quarter  of  the  sixteenth  century — some 
experts  say  much  earlier,  even  a  century.  The  second  generation  dates 
roundly  from  1600  to  1650,  and  the  third  generation  from  the  middle  to 
the  end  of  the  seventeenth  century." 

It  may  be  seen  from  the  stress  put  upon  this  question,  in  what  im- 
portance Kaneiye  tsuba  are  held.  Out  of  the  many  thousand  signed 
ones  whose  signatures  generally  read  "Made  by  Kaneiye,  who  lived  in 
Fushimi  in  Yamashiro"  (and  these  have  probably  been  added  long 
afterwards),  there  are  very  few  genuine  Kaneiye  tsuba,  as  a  collector 
will  readily  realize  when  he  has  the  fortune  to  look  upon  an  authentic 
work  from  the  master's  hand.  Three  distinct  Kaneiye  who  worked 
before  the  eighteenth  century  are  thought  to  have  existed,  judging 
from  the  technique  and  decoration  of  specimens  determined  as  originals. 

The  tsuba  of  Kaneiye  Shodai  are  usually  of  elongated,  oval  form 
or  occasionally  of  mokko  form,  of  a  very  hard  quality  of  iron,  the  sub- 
jects of  decoration  being  personages,  classical,  or  religious,  sculptured  in 
sharp  relief,  with  inlay  of  silver  or  gold  on  the  faces  and  ornaments. 
The  form  of  tsuba  known  as  kobushigata,  in  outline  resembling  a  closed 
fist  (kobushi),  is  said  to  have  been  introduced  by  him. 

Kaneiye  Nidai,  whose  work  is  held  by  most  experts  as  superior  to 
Kaneiye  Shodai,  worked  in  lower  relief  with  great  simplicity,  and 
exquisitely  depicted  the  landscapes  so  suggestive  of  Sesshit  and  the  Kano 
school.  A  characteristic  of  Kaneiye  Nidai  is  the  finishing  of  the  edge, 
which  is  often  irregular  and  bordered  by  a  folding  over  of  the  metal  in 
very  low  relief.  , 

The  third  Kaneiye,  whose  tsuba  are  heavy  and  generally  round,  pre- 
ferred birds  and  flowers  as  his  subjects  of  decoration.    The  tsuba  of 

1  H.  Joly  and  K.  Tomita,  Japanese  Art  and  Handicraft,  p.  109.  See  also  M. 
de  Tressan,  Quelques  problemes  relatifs  a  l'historie  de  la  garde  de  sabre  japonaise 
(Ostasiatische  Zeitschrift,  Vol.  II,  pp.  434-436). 

'Notes  on  Arms  and  Armor,  p.  69. 


48  Japanese  Sword-Mounts 

all  three  are  remarkable  for  the  effect  of  pliability  which  has  been 
given  to  the  carefully  worked  iron.  In  the  early  specimens  the  reliefs 
of  precious  metals  are  sparing,  but  applied  with  remarkable  effectiveness, 
while  the  later  followers  of  the  Kaneiye  school  frequently  used  gold  and 
silver  in  higher  relief.  , 

Since  the  greatness  of  the  Kaneiye  artists  was  recognized  even  by 
their  contemporaries,  numerous  followers  and  copyists  of  varying  de- 
grees of  ability  sprang  up  and  endeavored  to  supply  the  demand  for  these 
desirable  tsuba.  As  was  observed  above,  there  are  thousands  of  guards 
signed  "Kaneiye,"  many  of  which  are  very  evidently  poor  copies  or  late 
productions.  Distinctions  have  been  worked  out  by  which  the  genuine 
signatures  may  be  identified,  such  as  a  sharp  cutting  of  the  hook  stroke 
in  the  iye,  but  it  is  not  safe  to  rely  on  these  incidental  facts.  The  art 
expressed,  and  the  treatment  of  the  medium  of  the  tsuba  under  consid- 
eration, are  the  only  real  bases  on  which  to  test  a  genuine  Kaneiye. 

To  appreciate  the  meaning  and  appeal  of  these  artists,  one  must 
consider  the  philosophy  of  the  Zen  sect  of  Buddhism,  which  had  such 
an  influence  on  Sesshu,  the  artist  from  whose  works  came  much  of  the 
inspiration  of  the  three  Kaneiye,  especially  Kaneiye  Nidai.  In  the 
revival  of  Chinese  culture  in  the  Ashikaga  period,  there  appeared  in  the 
paintings  of  many  artists,  especially  Sesshu,  that  spirit  of  the  grand  calm 
of  nature  which  followers  of  the  Zen  sect  sought  for  in  their  practice 
of  deep  contemplation  and  the  mental  concentration  on  the  absolute. 
"The  Zen  sect  was  the  most  influential  among  the  samurai  class  in  old 
Japan,  and  still  has  many  adherents  among  educated  men.  Through  the 
practice  of  Zazen,  its  believers  acquired  presence  of  mind,  calm  resigna- 
tion to  destiny,  renunciation  of  worldly  desires  and,  above  all,  fearless- 
ness before  death,  all  these  qualities  greatly  contributing  to  the  forma- 
tion of  the  spirit  of  Japan  called  Bushido."1  , 

This  Buddhistic  spirit  pervades  certain  of  the  tsuba  of  the  Kaneiye 
to  a  remarkable  degree.  On  these  limited  fields  and  through  the  recal- 
citrant medium  of  iron,  these  masters  have  in  rare  cases  captured  and 
interpreted  some  truly  noble  landscapes.  The  close  of  man's  earthly 
career  and  the  still  solitude  of  the  tomb  are  remarkably  suggested  on  the 
mokkd-lovmzd  guard  in  Plate  VIII,  Fig.  i. 

On  the  reverse,  a  silver  crescent  moon  shining  over  a  stone  lantern 
sheds  her  faint  light  upon  bedewed  grasses,  touched  with  silver  and 
gold,  and  bending  close  to  the  uneven  ground.    A  skull  with  the  teeth  in 

1  Kato  Naoshi,  Eastern  Ideas  and  the  Japanese  Spirit  (Transactions  Japan 
Soc,  Vol.  XIII,  p.  121). 


Kaneiye  49 

relief  of  silver  lies  exposed  to  the  elements  and  half  covered  in  the 
grasses  on  the  obverse  side,  where  the  same  uneven  surface  tends  to 
give  a  note  of  ruggedness  and  mystery  in  the  varying  shadows.  The  dark 
brown  iron  is  wax-like  and  so  modelled  as  to  give  the  appearance  of 
pliability.  The  votive  stone  lantern,  a  typical  form  seen  in  the  ceme- 
teries, has  been  chiselled  out  of  the  iron  and  filled  in  with  a  gray  pewter 
covered  with  punches  which  tend  to  produce  a  stone-like  surface.  The 
guard  is  signed  Kaneiye  Yamashiro  Kuni  Fushimi  ju  ("Kaneiye  who 
lived  in  Fushimi  in  Yamashiro").  It  was  acquired  early  in  the  eighties 
in  Japan  by  Edward  Greey,  and  bears  all  the  marks  of  being  a  genuine 
product  of  the  first  Kaneiye. 

The  two  other  examples  herein  illustrated  are  in  the  style  of 
Kaneiye  Nidai,  who,  we  are  told  by  S.  Hara  and  others,  came  from  the 
family  Aoki.  He  also  lived  in  Fushimi  in  Yamashiro  and  later  moved 
to  the  province  of  Higo.  Two  other  names,  Jubei  and  Tetsunin  ("Iron 
Man"  or  "Iron  Kernel")  were  used  by  him,  according  to  S.  Hara  and 
the  Honcho  ko-kon  zan  ko-fu  ryaku.  The  author  of  the  latter  book, 
Kuwa  Hara  Mago-no-jo,  mentions  the  fact  that  in  Yamashiro  there  is 
iron  very  suitable  for  swords  and  sword-fittings. 

Fig.  2  in  Plate  VIII  is  likewise  signed  Kaneiye  Yamashiro  Kuni 
Fushimi  ju.  With  the  same  simplicity,  a  similarly  large  view  of  nature 
is  encompassed  within  the  small  field  of  this  almost  circular  iron  guard. 
Above  are  mountains  crowned  with  rugged  trees,  which  rise  as  in 
mystery  from  a  misty  foreground,  all  suggestive  of  the  Chinese  land- 
scape. On  the  very  edge  of  the  tsuba  are  two  geese  with  golden  bills, 
modelled  in  low  relief,  one  stretching  its  long  neck,  calls  to  break  the 
silence  round  about;  the  other,  pushing  through  the  low  rushes,  which 
are  bedewed  with  silver  drops,  moves  toward  the  water's  edge  rippled 
by  a  soft  breeze  and  pictured  on  the  reverse  side  of  the  guard.  It 
has  much  of  the  quality  of  Kaneiye  Nidai,  but  is  more  likely  the  work 
of  one  of  his  followers  in  the  late  seventeenth  century. 

Though  unsigned,  the  third  of  the  tsuba  which  represent  this 
school  of  workers,  was  evidently  made  by  an  artist  thoroughly  imbued 
with  the  same  lofty  spirit  as  the  Kaneiye  themselves,  and  worked  out 
with  a  feeling  and  technique  worthy  of  his  masters.  The  form  is  a 
modified  mokko,  and  the  metal  is  also  a  soft  brown  iron.  The  subject, 
a  favorite  of  the  Zen  followers,  is  full  of  allegorical  meaning,  remind- 
ing one  of  the  "Song  of  the  Ten  Bulls"  by  Sokko  Zenshi  of  the  Sung 
dynasty  (963-1279),  a  series  of  verses  representing  the  fundamental 


50  Japanese  Sword-Mounts 

ideas  of  the  Zen  sect.1  Above,  cut  in  openwork,  are  clouds,  before 
which  rise  high  and  bare  mountain  peaks,  telling  of  a  lonely  and  impres- 
sive mountain  pass.  Below,  crossing  a  stream,  which  is  merely  inti- 
mated, is  a  lonely  traveller.  He  wears  a  broad  hat,  and,  seated  on  the 
back  of  a  bull,  holds  in  one  hand  a  stick  or  flute,  while  the  other  hand 
rests  on  the  back  of  the  beast.  The  face  and  tiny  hand  are  in  relief 
of  silver,  the  bridle  and  nose  ring  of  the  bull  are  of  gold,  as  are  the  flecks 
of  foam  in  the  disturbed  stream.  On  the  reverse  are  low  rushes  near 
water-lines  broken  by  one  or  two  golden  drops.  The  calm  and  repose 
herein  suggested  is  evident  even  to  a  casual  observer,  and  the  deeper 
meaning  attends  those  who  are  familiar  with  these  classic  verses  of  Zen 
teaching,  cited  above,  telling  of  man's  mastery  of  the  animal  forces  of 
life,  as  he  seeks  to  find  his  true  self  and  his  consequent  harmony  with 
the  higher  forces  of  nature. 

Probably  contemporaneous  with  Kaneiye  was  Myochin  Nobuiye, 
likewise  a  great  artist.  Mention  has  been  made  in  the  foregoing  pages 
of  the  work  of  the  Myochin  armorers,  and  some  of  the  tsuba  bearing 
marks  characteristic  of  their  workmanship  have  been  described  and 
illustrated  (Plate  VI).  The  members  of  this  famous  family  are  said 
to  have  been  the  court  armorers  from  the  twelfth  century  to  the 
eighteenth,  Munesuke  being  credited  with  the  production  of  the  famous 
helmet  of  Yoshitsune  (1159-89),  faithfully  portrayed  in  Fig.  1, 
Plate  XLVIII,  which  is  now  in  the  monastery  on  Mount  Kuruma, 
and  which,  on  account  of  its  elaborate  reliefs  of  precious  metals,  is 
doubted  by  some  to  be  of  so  early  a  period. 

The  tsuba  of  the  armorers  generally  are  found  to  be  of  iron,  either 
plain  or  with  sober  designs  chiselled  in  negative  silhouette.  The  foldings 
of  the  layers  of  iron  (mokume  ji;  literally,  "wood  grain"),  which  can 
be  distinguished  on  close  examination,  add  greatly  to  the  beauty  of  these 
objects  and  lead  us  to  agree  with  H.  Toly  that  the  Myochin  must  have 
been  taught  tsuba-making  by  the  swordsmiths  who  forged  the  blades 
from  layers  of  iron  of  varying  hardness.2  Indeed,  many  of  the  Myochin 
are  known  to  have  been  swordsmiths  themselves,  several  members  of 
this  family  being  listed  with  the  pre-eminent  Masamune. 

With  the  advent  of  Nobuiye,  the  seventeenth  Myochin,  the  processes 
of  the  armorer  appeared  on  the  sword-guard ;  forceful  designs,  primarily 
of  dragons  executed  in  repousse,  suggest  some  of  the  motives  which 


1  Cf.  Kato  Naoshi  (Eastern  Ideas  and  the  Japanese  Spirit,  Transactions 
Japan  Soc,  Vol.  XIII,  p.  116)  for  a  full  reading  of  the  verses. 

"  For  detailed  account  of  the  process  of  producing  mokume  ji,  cf.  Brinkley, 
Japan  and  China,  Vol.  VII,  pp.  245-247. 


The  Myochin  Family  51 

decorate  the  breast-plates  and  helmets  made  by  these  famous  craftsmen. 
Nobuiye  I,  who  has  an  outstanding  place  both  as  an  armorer  and  a  tsuba 
maker,  was  the  son  of  Yoshiyasu,  and  lived  at  Shirai  in  Kozuke  in  the 
first  half  of  the  sixteenth  century.  The  years  1554  or  1564  have  been 
given  as  the  date  of  his  death,  which  occurred  in  the  seventy-ninth  year 
of  his  age.  Imitations  of  his  work  and  forgeries  of  his  name  are 
almost  as  common  as  those  of  the  Kaneiye.  According  to  H.  Joly/ 
there  are  several  artists  of  the  name  of  Nobuiye,  who  resided  in  other 
provinces  than  Koshii,  and  who  must  not  be  confused  with  Myochin 
Nobuiye.  He  used  many  names,  the  tradition  being  that  he  called  him- 
self Yasuiye  (not  to  be  confused  with  the  Yasuiye  of  the  nineteenth 
century),  until  Takeda  Harunobu  rewarded  him  with  the  last  character 
of  his  name  "Nobu"  in  recognition  of  his  talent.  Other  signatures  used 
by  him  are  here  taken  from  S.  Hara2  and  de  Tressan  :3  Sakon  no 
Shokan,  Osumi  no  kami,  Iyeyasu,  Rakui,  Koshii  Myochin,  Ujiiye  and 
Gakui. 

The  second  Nobuiye,  son  of  Nobuiye  I,  was  named  Ujiiye,  taking 
the  name  of  Nobuiye  II  in  1550,  and  also  signing  his  work  Shichirodayu 
and  Iyeyoshi.  Sadaiye  (1513-74),  likewise  a  son  of  Nobuiye  I,  was  the 
eighteenth  Myochin,  and  lived  at  Odawara  and  later  in  the  province  of 
Iga.     He  was  also  called  Matahachiro  and  Heiroku. 

Working  from  the  information  given  in  the  Soken  Kisho  (1781),  M. 
de  Tressan  classifies  the  tsuba  of  Nobuiye  in  the  three  following  catego- 
ries,— (1)  those  decorated  in  karakusa  ("floral  scrolls"),  characters  of 
writing,  and  the  tortoise-back  design;  (2)  those  in  openwork  and 
positive  silhouette;  (3)  those  in  repousse,  hammered  and  chiselled  in 
a  remarkable  style,  imitating  shells.  The  centipede  seems  also  to  have 
been  a  favorite  motive  with  Nobuiye,  and  appears  chased  in  low  relief 
on  an  excellent  specimen  in  the  Naunton  collection.  This  design  may 
have  been  a  favorite  of  Takeda  Harunobu,  who  is  said  to  have  recog- 
nized the  art  of  Nobuiye ;  for  it  will  be  remembered  that  he  favored  the 
Shingen  tsuba  which  often  were  decorated  with  the  centipede.  Since  the 
centipede  is  associated  with  Bishamon,  the  god  of  riches,  whose  aid  is 
sought  by  warriors,  this  motive  naturally  would  have  its  appeal  as  a 
decoration  for  the  sword. 

Many  of  the  followers  of  Nobuiye  adopted  the  tortoise-shell  design 
for  the  ground  pattern  on  their  tsuba  as  well  as  the  mokume  ji,  both  of 

1  Japanese  Sword  Fittings  in  the  Naunton  Collection,  p.  3. 
'Die  Meister  der  japanischen  Schwertzierathen,  p.  129. 
*  Involution   de   la   garde   du   sabre   japonaise.     Bull,   de   la   Soc.   Fronco- 
Japonaise,  Vol  XX,  p.  10. 


52  Japanese  Sword-Mounts 

which  he  used  effectively.  E.  Gilbertson1  has  traced  the  genealogy 
of  this  famous  family  and  characterized  the  products  of  the  leading 
members.  Many  of  the  followers  of  Nobuiye  are  listed  in  this  article. 
Those  who  are  represented  by  specimens  in  Field  Museum  of  Natural 
History  are  the  following: — 

Munekuni,  an  artist  not  listed  by  S.  Hara,  but  one  who  is  probably 
identical  with  the  Munekuni  referred  to  by  E.  Gilbertson,  who  was 
called  Iwami,  and  who  lived  at  Aizu  in  the  province  of  Mutsu  about 

1751-63. 

Munenori,  family  name  Myochin,  who  worked  in  Tsuchiura  in  the 
province  of  Hitachi.    He  also  used  the  name  Yukiye. 

Yoshihisa,  family  name  Myochin,  worked  in  Echizen  in  the  first 
half  of  the  nineteenth  century. 

The  tsuba  on  Plate  IX,  Fig.  1  is  signed  "Myochin  Munekuni."  It  is 
circular  and  of  dark  brown  iron,  chiselled  to  represent  the  bark  of  an 
old  tree.  This  treatment  is  undoubtedly  a  development  of  the  true 
mokume  ji  of  the  earlier  Myochin  workers.  At  the  top  of  the  guard, 
on  both  the  obverse  and  reverse  sides,  there  is  a  branch  of  pine  in  relief, 
with  needles  inlaid  in  gold.  Below  at  the  right  on  the  obverse,  in  high 
relief  of  copper,  is  the  cast-off  shell  of  a  cicada  (semi).  This  insect  is 
the  symbol  of  resurrection  in  China.2 

The  other  specimen  illustrated  is  of  later  date  and  also  of  interesting 
workmanship.  It  is  signed  on  the  obverse  Myochin  ki  Munenori 
nukinde  tansei  kore  wo  tsukuru  ("Myochin  Munenori  distinguished  for 
great  diligence  made  this").  On  the  reverse,  the  inscription  reads, 
Bunkyu  gan  nen  shu  getsu  jo  ran  ("In  the  early  part  of  an  autumn  day 
in  the  first  year  of  Bunkyu";  that  is,  1861).  The  tsuba  is  of  mokko 
form,  and  is  made  of  brown  iron,  chiselled  to  represent  a  helmet  with 
small  laminae.  Both  sides  are  identical,  and  the  whole  is  very  light  on 
account  of  the  fact  that  the  "laminae"  are  rounded  and  hollow.  Alto- 
gether it  is  a  remarkable  piece  of  chiselling.  The  seppa  dai  are  separate 
plates  affixed  to  either  side,  and  each  is  unevenly  notched  on  the  edge. 
It  is  interesting  to  see  the  traditions  of  the  early  Myochin  armorers 
reflected  in  this  helmet-like  design  of  nineteenth-century  workmanship. 

1  Genealogy  of  the  Myochin  Family  (Transactions  Japan  Soc,  Vol.  I, 
pp.  111-127). 

2  B.  Laufer,  Jade,  p.  301.    Cf.  L.  Hearn,  Shadowings,  pp.  71-102. 


FIELD  MUSEUM  OF  NATURAL  HISTORY. 


ANTHROPOLOGY,   VOL.   XVI,   PL.   IX. 


IRON  TSUBA  BY  LATE  MYOCHIN  ARTISTS  (p.  52). 


gPBBITY  OF  \Lim\>  UMAW 


MmOSHY  OF  ILLiaOiS  L13HAHV 


V.    EARLY  INLAYS:   ONIN,  FUSHIMI,  YOSHIRO,  TEMPO, 
HEIANJO,  KAGA,  GOMOKU  ZOGAN,  SHOAMI,  AND  AWA 

It  has  become  customary  to  class  under  the  heading  Fushimi-Yoshird 
all  iron  guards  decorated  in  flat  hirazogan  of  brass  or  in  high  relief  of 
brass,  which  were  made  in  the  town  of  Fushimi  in  Yamashiro,  where  in 
1589  Hideyoshi  built  his  castle,  and  whither  artists  and  artisans  flocked 
in  great  numbers.  However,  this  term  includes  such  different  types 
that  a  narrower  classification  is  more  desirable.  , 

In  the  fifteenth  century  certain  guards  were  made  known  as  Onin 
tsuba,  so  called  from  the  name  of  the  period  Onin  (1467-68).  The  inlay 
is  flat,  either  of  copper,  brass,  or  sentoku.  These  tsuba  are  usually  thin 
in  the  web  bounded  by  a  rounded  rim,  and  decorated  with  simple  motives. 
An  example  in  this  collection  is  inlaid  on  either  side  in  copper  with  a 
design  of  a  horse's  halter. 

The  term  Fushimi  tsuba  generally  describes  those  guards  in  which 
the  designs  of  flowers,  scrolls,  cloves,  and  other  decorations  are  inlaid  in 
flat  hirazogan  of  brass,  while  Yoshiro  is  applied  to  those  which  are  in 
higher  relief  and  especially  to  the  tsuba  in  which  crests  (mon)  in  open 
work  and  inlay  form  the  decoration.  Both  of  these  types  probably  date 
from  the  sixteenth  century.  The  name  Yoshiro  is  derived  from  that  of 
Koike  Yoshiro  who  also  signed  his  work  Naomasa  with  the  title 
Izumi-no-Kami,  and  who  must  have  originated  this  style  of  decoration. 
M.  de  Tressan  cites  a  tsuba  with  the  signature  of  Yoshiro  and  the  date 
1533.    It  is  in  the  collection  of  M.  Jacoby  of  Berlin. 

An  interesting  Fushimi  tsuba  may  be  studied  from  the  illustration 
(Plate  X,  Fig.  1).  It  is  of  iron  and  carved  in  the  round  so  that  the  solid 
portion  forms  the  mitsu-tomoye ,  a  design  whose  meaning  has  been  dis- 
cussed at  length  on  p.  43.  Each  comma-shaped  figure  is  inlaid  in  brass 
with  an  arabesque  design  of  vines  bearing  the  leaves  and  fruit  of  the 
gourd,  a  motive  known  to  have  been  a  favorite  one  of  Hideyoshi,  the 
general,  who  was  ruling  Japan  at  that  time  from  his  palace  in  Fushimi 
(see  note  on  p.  41).  The  inlay  is  flat,  and  fine  lines  of  surface  engrav- 
ing, called  kebori,  bring  out  the  veins  of  the  leaves. 

Appearing  on  the  same  plate  (Fig.  2)  is  another  tsuba,  also  of 
Fushimi  style.  It  is  of  a  size  larger  than  is  ordinary,  being  in  form 
square  with  rounded  corners.  On  both  sides,  in  low  relief  of  brass, 
there  are  designs  of  broken  folding  fans  (ogi)  the  remaining  portions  of 

53 


54  Japanese  Sword-Mounts 

which  are  decorated  with  water  lines  and  flecks  of  foam  chiselled  in 
kebori.  , 

This  decoration,  the  riddled  ogi,  probably  refers  to  the  incident 
which  occurred  at  the  battle  of  Dan-no-ura  (see  Plate  XX,  Fig.  2). 
Antoku,  the  boy  emperor,  had  been  given  a  fan  decorated  with  a  red 
sun-disk  of  the  Kami,  which  the  priest  of  Itsukushima  declared  would 
divert  any  arrows  and  thus  protect  the  Taira  boats.  Accordingly,  at 
the  battle,  the  fan  was  secured  to  a  bamboo  pole  and  placed  in  the  bow 
of  the  first  ship,  as  they  proceeded  against  the  Minamoto.  Some  ac- 
counts have  it  that  a  beautiful  girl  stood  just  below  the  fan.  Nasu-no- 
Yoichi  of  the  Minamoto  clan  accepted  the  challenge,  and  riding  into 
the  waves,  raised  his  bow  and  let  fly  his  arrow,  shattering  the  fan  to 
pieces.  Thus  with  this  foreboding  opening  began  the  battle  in  which 
the  power  of  the  Taira  family  was  hopelessly  crushed  and  the  might 
of  the  Minamoto  established. 

One  of  the  earliest  uses  of  brass  inlay  seems  to  have  been  of  the  type 
seen  on  the  third  tsuba  in  this  group  (Plate  X,  Fig.  3).  Circular  in 
form,  it  is  divided  into  twelve  sections,  in  six  of  which  is  hammered  a 
crudely  formed  plum-blossom.  The  six  other  divisions  are  adorned  with 
small  bosses  of  brass  in  low  relief,  and  the  fields  are  outlined,  as  is  the 
entire  tsuba,  with  an  uneven  line  of  brass.  Two  tsuba  of  similar  treat- 
ment are  assigned  by  H.  Joly  and  K.  Tomita1  to  the  sixteenth  century. 

The  brass  reliefs  on  Yoshiro  guards  are  generally  higher  than  those 
found  on  tsuba  of  the  foregoing  group.  Conventionalized  floral  designs, 
such  as  the  one  in  Plate  X,  Fig.  4,  are  common  decorations.  This 
mok ko- formed  tsuba  recalls  the  aoi  form,  perforated  as  it  is  with  the 
four  aoi  leaves.  The  aoi  outline  is  accentuated  by  a  line  of  brass  relief 
carved  to  represent  a  rope.  The  flowers  and  leaves  which  appear  on 
both  sides  of  the  guard  are  finished  with  kebori  chasing.  Many  Yoshiro 
tsuba  are  decorated  with  plum  sprays,  ginko  leaves,  and  the  blossoms  of 
the  Chinese  bell-flower,  kikyo  (Platycodon  grandiflora),  which  appear 
on  this  specimen. 

Examples  of  so-called  Tempo  tsuba  may  properly  be  listed  among  the 
early  inlays,  as  the  decoration  on  these  particular  guards  is  a  peculiar 
type  of  incrustation  of  hammered  brass.  Tempo  tsuba  likewise  were 
produced  in  the  province  of  Yamashiro,  probably  at  Sanoda,  in  the 
seventeenth  century,  although  they  are  said  to  have  originated  during 
the  second  half  of  the  sixteenth  century  in  Nara,  where  an  artist  Tembo 

1  Japanese  Art  and  Handicraft,  Plate  ex,  Nos.  127-128. 


OF  liUaOIS  I  UilUitY 


j****vm**K 


Tempo  and  Heianjo  Tsuba  55 

(Ten  ho)  worked;  he  decorated  his  tsuba  with  figures  stamped  with  a 
die  before  the  final  heating  of  the  steel.  The  character  tern  appears  most 
frequently  upon  these  guards.  This  unusual  method  is  employed  by 
Hirokuni,  an  eighteenth-century  artist  of  Sendai,  by  Mitsuhaya  (nine- 
teenth century)  of  Kyoto,  and  by  Kiami,  an  eighteenth-century  worker 
in  Aki. 

The  Tempo  tsuba  (Plate  XI,  Fig.  1)  is  of  iron  with  a  surface  made 
uneven  by  carving  and  stamping.  Scattered  along  the  edge  of  the  guard 
are  patches  of  brass  in  forms  suggesting  clouds  which  are  broken  by 
small  punch-marks.  At  least  two  dies  have  been  applied  in  stamping  the 
iron,  but  the  impressions  of  the  characters  are  too  incomplete  for  de- 
cipherment. 

In  the  late  sixteenth  or  early  seventeenth  century,  several  Fushimi 
artists  and  artisans  moved  to  the  capital  Kyoto,  whose  classic  appellation 
is  Heianjo.  This  name  appears  before  the  signatures  of  certain  makers 
of  iron  tsuba,  decorated,  for  the  most  part,  with  flat  inlays  of  brass 
depicting  animals  and  birds,  sometimes  treated  in  a  grotesque  manner.1 
The  design  of  a  spirited  pony  running  through  grasses  has  been  chosen 
for  the  decoration  of  the  obverse  side  of  a  typical,  unsigned  Heianjo 
tsuba  in  Plate  XI,  Fig.  2.  At  either  side  of  the  animal  there  is  an 
hexagonal  design,  probably  a  crude  form  of  crest,  in  the  centre  of 
which  a  single  cross  is  inlaid.  On  the  reverse  side,  also  inlaid  in  brass, 
are  horse  trappings,  such  as  a  bridle,  saddle,  and  stirrups. 

Similar  subjects  were  executed  by  later  Heianjo  artists  in  chasing  in 
the  round  (ntarubori).  Occasionally  touches  of  gold  (nunome-zogan) 
were  applied  to  portions  of  these  sculptured  pieces,  as  is  the  case  in  an 
iron  tsuba  in  this  collection:  here  three  galloping  ponies  are  carved  in 
the  round  and  spotted  with  gold  inlay. 

Though  the  early  Kaga  artists  are  said  to  have  originally  migrated 
from  Fushimi  and  settled  in  Kanazawa  in  the  early  seventeenth  century, 
there  is  little  in  the  typical  work  of  this  school  to  suggest  the  rather 
crude  inlays  which  have  been  described  above.  Kaga  artists  are  gen- 
erally famed  for  the  accuracy  of  their  excellent  hirazogan.  Undoubtedly 
they  owe  much  of  their  refinement  in  color,  design,  and  workmanship  to 
the  influence  of  Goto  artists,  who  were  at  that  time  creating  their  famous 
reliefs  in  the  precious  metals,  and  some  of  whom  were  also  working  in 
the  province  of  Kaga.2  The  earliest  Kaga  work  is  generally  accom- 
plished in  iron  with  inlays  of  sentoku  or  silver,  which  produce  a  beautiful 


1  Okabe  Kakuya,  Japanese  Sword  Guards,  p.  37. 

1  H.  Joly,  Japanese  Sword  Fittings  in  the  Naunton  Collection,  p.  51. 


56  Japanese  Sword-Mounts 

and  brilliant  effect.  As  the  influence  of  the  Goto  artists  increased, 
shakudo,  shibuichi,  and  copper  were  preferred  for  the  ground  of  the 
tsuba,  in  which  metals  of  varying  shades  were  inlaid  in  a  variety  of 
design.  A  charming  characteristic  of  this  work  is  the  combination  of 
inlay  and  kebori.  It  is  quite  common  to  find,  especially  on  kozuka,  a 
design  inlaid  on  the  obverse  and,  on  the  reverse,  a  continuation  or 
supplementation  of  the  motive  executed  in  the  fine  hair-line  engraving. 
"The  schools  of  Kaga  were  numerous.  Early  in  the  seventeenth  century, 
Goto  Kenjo's  pupil,  Ujiye  Gondayu  founded  the  Katsuki.  Another  of 
Kenjo's  pupils  started  the  Kuwamura  group;  a  pupil  of  Takujo  initi- 
ated the  Kuninaga  school;  and  Yoshihisa,  pupil  of  Yen  jo,  began  the 
Mizuno  family  in  the  Genroku  period  (1668- 1703).  Five  or  six  groups 
of  less  importance  might  be  mentioned,  besides  a  large  number  of  inde- 
pendent workers."1  Among  the  earliest  masters,  Yoshishige,  who  used 
the  name  Gorosaku,  and  Kuninaga,  who  sometimes  signed  his  work 
Jirosaku,  should  be  pointed  out.  Both  these  artists  were  chisellers  and 
inlay-workers  for  the  daimyo  of  Kaga,  and  worked  in  the  first  half  of 
the  seventeenth  century. 

In  the  two  unsigned  examples  of  Kaga  work  reproduced  in  Plate  XI, 
Figs.  3-4,  the  ground  metal  in  each  case  is  copper.  The  tsuba  which 
belongs  to  the  late  eighteenth  century,  is  circular  with  riohitsu  plugged 
with  shakudo.  Inlaid  in  flat  hirazogan  with  kebori  are  silver  peonies 
with  leaves  of  shakudS  veined  in  fine  lines  of  gold.  At  the  right  on  the 
obverse  side  is  a  split  bamboo  curtain  (sudare)  inlaid  in  dark  silver 
with  bindings  of  shakudo  in  which  fine  thread-like  designs  are  inlaid 
with  gold.  Above  hangs  the  tying  cord  with  tassels  in  silver  zogan  with 
kebori.  On  the  reverse  side  of  the  tsuba  the  peony  motive  is  con- 
tinued, with  the  addition  of  three  flying  butterflies  in  gold  and  silver. 

The  kozuka,  also  of  late  eighteenth-century  workmanship,  is  a 
happy  combination  of  inlay  and  chasing.  On  the  obverse  in  flatly  en- 
graved inlay  of  gold  and  silver  are  a  butterfly,  dragonfly,  grasshopper, 
and  two  roaches,  while  on  the  reverse  side  branches  of  a  species  of 
valerian  (ominameshi)  and  grasses  are  engraved  in  kebori. 

A  peculiar  form  of  incrustation  appears  in  early  Kaga  work  com- 
bined with  crests.  It  is  called  gomoku-zogan  (literally,  "dirt  inlay"). 
It  has  been  described  as  representing  broken  pine-needles  or  frost-work 
(shimofuri),  and  consists  of  scraps  of  brass  wire  and  filings  scattered 
over  the  iron  field.  On  the  examples  belonging  to  this  collection  it  forms 
the  sole  decoration,  appearing  without  the  Kaga  crests.     The  futatsu 

1H.  Joly,  Japanese  Sword  Fittings  in  the  Naunton  Collection,  p.  52. 


flHBnv*uw>u3Mtt 


Shoami  School  57 

tomoye  is  again  the  motive  chiselled  in  openwork  in  the  thin  iron  guard 
in  Plate  XII,  Fig.  1.  Scraps  and  bits  of  brass  wire  are  scattered  on  the 
edge  and  a  portion  of  the  centre  of  this  tsuba,  which  is  rather  an  unusual 
form  to  be  decorated  with  gomoku-sogan.  It  was  most  likely  made  in 
the  late  sixteenth  or  early  seventeenth  century,  long  before  the  Kaga 
artists  had  developed  their  skill  in  hirasogan  of  precious  metals. 

Though  the  Shoami  school  was  organized  in  Kyoto  in  the  seventeenth 
century,  work  typical  of  this  group  of  artisans  seems  to  have  been  done 
in  many  different  parts  of  Japan,  where  later  followers  set  up  their  own 
ateliers  in  their  native  provinces.  The  school  was  founded  by  Masanori, 
who  produced  tsuba  in  inlay  after  the  manner  of  Umetada  Myoju 
(p.  68)  with  whom  he  is  said  to  have  worked.  Certain  pieces  exe- 
cuted in  low  relief  with  inlays  also  bear  his  name.  By  many  critics 
Shoami  tsuba  are  considered  as  inferior  to  the  products  of  most  of  the 
other  schools ;  nevertheless  they  have  made  their  appeal  to  many,  as  may 
be  seen  in  studying  the  average  collections  of  sword-fittings. 

The  designs  seem  to  be  the  common  ones  used  on  tsuba,  an  in- 
dividual characteristic,  however,  being  the  cloud-like  designs  usually 
cut  out  in  these  guards.  Much  of  the  work  resembles  that  of  Fushimi 
or  Yoshiro  tsuba,  though  the  designs  are  more  freely  drawn  and 
of  a  wider  range.  Reliefs  sculptured  from  the  iron  itself  are  also 
frequent.  The  list  of  Shoami  workers  is  long;  among  the  outstanding 
figures  are  Morikuni,  Moritomi,  Shigesada,  and  Dennai.  Shoami  Aizu 
no  ju,  "Shoami  living  in  Aizu"  (a  district  of  the  province  of  Iwashiro)  is 
the  signature  incised  on  a  circular  iron  guard,  with  three  cloud  forms 
chiselled  in  openwork  and  decorated  with  various  shells  in  relief  of 
shakudo  and  copper  (Plate  XII,  Fig.  2).  Water  lines  are  suggested  by 
delicate  gold  nunome, — a  process  which  was  used  with  extreme  skill  by 
the  following  group  of  artists.  There  is  in  this  collection  an  iron  tsuba 
on  whose  entire  surface  tendrils  and  blossoms  of  the  kiri  (Paulownia 
imperalis)  are  carved.  It  is  signed  "Shoami  Kanenori,"  an  artist 
hitherto  unlisted  in  the  records.  The  kiri  design  very  often  appears  on 
Shoami  tsuba. 

Most  of  the  inlay  work  designated  Awa  is  done  in  nunome  on  iron 
in  contrast  to  the  true  hirazdgan  of  the  Kaga  craftsmen.  This  school  is 
a  branch  of  the  Shoami,  having  been  founded  by  Tansai,  in  the  late 
seventeenth  or  early  eighteenth  century.  Much  of  the  product  of  this 
school  is  in  inlay  on  openwork  designs  of  trees  and  boats,  two  popular 
and  attractive  types  also  consisting  of  screens  or  fan  forms  carved  in 
iron  and  inlaid  with  all-over  patterns  in  different  shades  of  gold.   Many 


58  Japanese  Sword-Mounts 

Awa  tsuba  are  said  to  have  been  made  for  presentation  purposes,  in 
which  case  they  were  lavishly  decorated,  being  called  "Kenjo"  tsuba,  a 
name  applied  to  those  made  for  presentation  to  the  shogun  (see  also 
Kinai  School,  p.  83).  The  designs  chosen  are  very  often  of  extreme 
delicacy ;  and  the  accomplishment  of  the  artist,  working  with  iron  as  a 
foundation,  calls  forth  real  admiration. 

The  sword-guard  and  kozuka  in  Plate  XII,  Figs.  3-4,  are  good 
examples  of  Awa  inlay  of  eighteenth-century  workmanship.  An  un- 
usual form,  the  military  fan  (gutnbai),  has  been  utilized  for  this  tsuba 
for  a  small  sword.  The  edge  is  rounded ;  the  lower  portion  presents  the 
short  handle,  made  into  the  appearance  of  bamboo,  and  the  upper  por- 
tion is  topped  with  a  tassel  skillfully  chiselled.  The  obverse  is  covered 
over  by  clouds  inlaid  in  gold  nunome.  On  the  right-hand  side  is  a 
golden  sun,  while  in  the  left  half  the  crescent  moon  is  inlaid  in  silver. 

Of  the  many  uses  of  fans  in  Japan,  that  of  the  gumbai  is  among 
the  most  important.  These  war  fans  were  made  either  of  leather  bound 
by  an  iron  rim  and  affixed  by  an  iron  stick  running  through  the  centre, 
or  were  entirely  of  iron.  They  were  used  by  military  commanders  for 
the  signalling  of  commands  and  the  enforcing  of  orders.  Among  the 
decorations,  the  most  common  one  is  that  of  a  red  sun  on  a  gold  ground, 
combined  with  a  silver  moon  among  clouds  of  dark  blue  or  black.1 

The  iron  kozuka  is  divided  into  six  panels,  three  of  which  are  incised 
with  lines  bearing  traces  of  silver  inlay.  The  other  three  are  inlaid  in 
delicate  gold  and  silver  nunome  with  designs  adapted  from  the  Genji 
Monogatari.2 

They  represent,  right  to  left,  the  chapters  entitled  Kiri  tsubo  ("the 
chamber  of  Kiri"),  Momiji-ga  ("maple  fete")  and  Ukifune  ("the  float- 
ing boat").  Accompanying  the  two  last-mentioned  are  the  signs  for  the 
chapter  headings, — motives  which  have  been  used  for  many  decorations, 
being  a  combination  of  a  numerical  sign  and  a  design  relating  to  the 
subject  matter  of  the  chapter.  The  Genji  symbols  appear  as  crests  on 
the  banners  of  the  Minamoto  (Genji)  family,  one  of  the  most  powerful 

*For  further  details  cf.  C.  Salwey,  Japanese  Fans  (Transactions  Japan 
Soc,  Vol.  II,  p.  30). 

'The  Genji  Monogatari,  one  of  the  greatest  literary  productions  of  Japan, 
was  written  about  1004  by  Murasaki  Shikibu  (Plate  LIV,  Fig.  1).  It  is  a  novel 
consisting  of  fifty-four  chapters,  forty-one  of  which  relate  the  adventures  of 
Prince  Genji  in  a  detailed  and  most  interesting  manner.  The  later  chapters, 
which  are  said  to  have  been  added  by  the  daughter  of  the  authoress,  chiefly 
concern  a  son  of  Prince  Genji's.  According  to  Aston  (Japanese  Literature, 
p.  94),  the  Genji  Monogatari  is  more  than  a  successful  novel,  it  is  a  prose  epic 
of  real  life  and  realistic  in  the  best  sense  of  the  word.  Seventeen  chapters  were 
translated  by  Suyematsu  Kenchio  and  published  in  book  form  (Tokyo,  Maruya, 
1881). 


Awa  Inlay  59 

houses  of  Japan  from  the  tenth  century  until  the  thirteenth  century, 
Yoshitsune  and  Yoritomo  being  its  most  famous  representatives.  The 
Genji  crest,  carried  in  battle,  is  white  on  a  blue  banner,  and  is  that 
symbol  which  marks  the  chapter  entitled  Hanachiru-sato  ("Villa  of  the 
Falling  Flowers").  These  signs  are  also  used  as  numerals  in  one  of  the 
kiki-ko  ("incense-sniffing  games"),  of  which  B.  H.  Chamberlain1 
has  given  an  account. 

'Things  Japanese,  5th  ed.,  p.  245. 


VI.    THE  SIXTEEN  MASTERS  OF  THE  GOTO  SCHOOL 
AND  THEIR  FOLLOWERS 

The  two  outstanding  names  among  the  artists  who  made  sword- 
fittings  in  the  sixteenth  century  are  Kaneiye  and  Goto  Yujo.  The  latter 
was  the  founder  of  a  school  whose  extraordinary  work  for  sixteen  gen- 
erations was  sought  after  by  many  of  the  leading  military  men,  and 
whose  products  to-day  are  considered  as  valuable  property  in  the  hands 
of  certain  Japanese  collectors. 

The  genealogy  of  the  Goto  Shirobei  family  has  been  carefully 
worked  out,  and  the  style  of  the  "Sixteen  Masters"  commented  upon  in 
detail  by  A.  Mosle.1  Only  a  brief  outline  of  the  product  of  this  school 
can  be  given  here,  and  that  arranged  in  reference  to  the  examples  in 
this  collection. 

For  the  reason  that  the  early  masters  of  the  Goto  family  worked 
entirely  for  the  daimyo  and  the  shogun,  very  few  mounts  of  undisputed 
authenticity  are  to  be  seen  outside  Japan,  where  they  have  been  handed 
down  from  generation  to  generation  fitted  in  exquisite  boxes,  accompa- 
nied by  orikami  (certificates  giving  the  name  of  the  master,  the  subject 
of  decoration,  and  the  value).  The  collecting  of  small  fittings  of  the 
Goto  family  by  the  nobility  became  fashionable  in  the  late  seventeenth 
and  eighteenth  centuries,  and  it  was  then  that  certificates  identifying 
unsigned  Goto  pieces  came  into  use.2 

Goto  Yujo  (1435  or  1440- 15 12)  was  the  originator  of  chasing  in 
relief  as  a  form  of  decoration  on  sword-furniture,  which  method  he 
applied  only  to  the  small  fittings.  The  style  which  he  instituted  was 
followed  with  more  or  less  accuracy  for  sixteen  generations  by  the  so- 
called  "Sixteen  Masters,"  direct  descendants  of  the  main  line ;  and  this 
style  was  called  iyebori  ("family  chasing").  He  was  probably  the  first 
maker  of  sword-fittings  who  used  the  softer  metals  and  alloys.  Many  of 
the  schools  devoted  to  the  decoration  of  the  sword  were  soon  affected ; 
the  influence  of  the  Goto  family  may  readily  be  traced  in  a  number  of 
groups.  , 

The  nanako  ("fish-roe")  ground  was  brought  to  perfection  by  these 
artists,  and  from  this  time  on  was  the  accepted  surface  decoration  for 

xThe  Sword  Ornaments  of  the  Goto  Shirobei  Family  (Transactions  Japan 
Soc,  Vol.  VIII,  pp.  188-208). 

*  H.  Joly,  Japanese  Sword  Fittings  in  the  Naunton  Collection,  p.  22. 

60 


The  Sixteen  Masters  of  the  Goto  School  6i 

the  fittings  of  the  swords  carried  by  daimyo  on  ceremonial  occasions. 
The  early  Goto  masters  had  their  nanako  prepared  for  them  by  crafts- 
men who  were  not  as  skilled  as  those  of  later  times.  In  some  cases  the 
original  work  is  characterized  by  overlapping  of  the  punch  strokes,  and 
again  the  grains  are  not  completely  formed,  possibly  due  to  a  deflection 
of  the  cup-shaped  tool  used  to  impress  the  tiny  bosses.  In  later  work 
the  grains  have  a  sharper,  nipple-shaped  appearance.  "When  it  is  re- 
membered that  the  punching  tool  was  guided  solely  by  the  hand  and  eye, 
and  that  three  or  more  blows  of  the  mallet  had  to  be  struck  for  every 
dot,  some  idea  may  be  formed  of  the  patience  and  accuracy  needed  to 
produce  these  tiny  protuberances  in  perfectly  straight  lines  at  exactly 
equal  intervals  and  of  absolutely  uniform  size,  so  that  a  magnifying- 
glass  can  scarcely  detect  any  variation  in  their  order  and  size.  Nanako 
disposed  in  straight  parallel  lines  has  always  ranked  at  the  head  of  this 
kind  of  work,  but  a  new  style  was  introduced  in  1560  by  Matabei,  the 
second  representative  of  the  Muneta  family.  It  was  obtained  by  punch- 
ing the  dots  in  intersecting  lines  so  arranged  that  the  dots  fell  uniformly 
into  diamond-shaped  groups  of  five  each.  This  was  called  go-no-nte 
nanako  because  of  its  resemblance  to  the  disposition  of  checkers  in  the 
Japanese  game  go.  A  century  later  (1640)  another  representative  of 
the  Muneta  family — Norinao,  known  in  the  art  world  as  Doki — invented 
a  new  style  of  nanako  to  which  the  name  daimyo  nanako  was  given, 
doubtless  because  its  special  excellence  seemed  to  reserve  it  for  the  use 
of  the  daimyo  only.  In  this  variety  the  lines  of  dots  alternated  with 
lines  of  polished  ground."1 

Straight  parallel  lines  and  concentric  lines  of  nanako  appear  most 
frequently  as  the  ground  decoration  on  the  fittings  made  by  the  early 
Goto  masters  who  at  first  made  only  mitokoromono  ("objects  of  three 
places")  :  kogai,  kozuka,  and  menuki.  The  kozuka  which  are  attributed 
to  Yujo  are  found  to  be,  in  many  cases,  reconstructions  probably  made 
from  ornaments  cut  from  kogai  and  affixed  to  a  new  field.  He  is  not 
known  to  have  made  any  fittings  save  menuki  and  kogai. 

The  subjects  delineated  on  these  early  products  are  mainly  symboli- 
cal of  strength,  for  the  sword  was  still  a  weapon  primarily  devoted  to 
fighting ;  it  had  not  yet  become  the  ornament  worn  to  complete  the  rich 
costume  of  later  days.  The  mythical  lion,  the  dragon,  the  centipede,  and 
familiar  historical  figures  appear  on  these  small  fittings.  The  figures, 
which  are  rather  heavy  in  outline,  are  in  many  cases  of  pure  gold.  The 
work  in  gold  incrustation  of  the  first  four  masters  was  not  successful, 

*F.  Brinkley,  Japan  and  China,  Vol.  VII,  p.  239. 


62  Japanese  Sword-Mounts 

for  they  had  not  yet  perfected  the  heating  and  chemical  processes  used 
in  producing  plating.1 

Flowers  and  crests  wrought  in  beautiful  detail  soon  appeared  on 
the  fittings  which  from  the  time  of  Tokujo,  the  fifth  master,  were  made 
primarily  for  a  smaller  sword  carried  by  the  daimyo  to  court  functions 
at  Yedo.  This  weapon  (a  short  wakizashi)  is  called  the  kamishimo- 
cashi,  because  it  was  worn  with  the  court  dress  (kamishimo).  The 
scabbard  was  of  black  lacquer,  and  the  fittings  were  of  shakudo-nanako 
adorned  with  the  formal  designs  above  mentioned.  For  several  genera- 
tions the  tsuba  on  the  kamishimo zashi  was  either  plain  nanako  adorned 
with  the  kiri  crest,  or  the  crest  of  an  individual  daimyo,  or  was  orna- 
mented along  the  edge  with  a  dragon  and  cloud  design  (Plate  XIV, 
Fig.  i).  These  last  were  generally  made  by  nanako  artists,  and  are 
rarely  signed,  as  Mosle  tells  us.2 

The  first  four  Goto  masters,  Yujo,  Sojo,  Joshin,  and  Kojo,  are  re- 
nowned for  their  menuki  and  kogai.  The  fifth  master  Tokujo  was  the 
first  Goto  to  make  fuchikashira,  kozuka,  and  tsuba;  and  was  also  the 
first  member  of  the  family  to  use  gold  plating  with  success.  He  is  said 
to  have  been  court  metal-worker  for  Hideyoshi  and  living  in  Kyoto, 
also  executed  orders  for  the  imperial  court  and  for  the  court  of  the 
shogun  at  Yedo.3  Yeijo,  the  sixth  master,  is  said  to  be  the  weakest 
among  these  early  artists.    He  was  succeeded  by  Ken  jo  and  Sokujo. 

The  names  of  the  remaining  eight  masters  are  as  follows : — 

Teijo      1 603- 1 673  Yen  jo     1720- 1784 

Ren  jo     1 627- 1 709  Keijo     1739- 1804 

Tsiijd     1669-1722  Shinjo  died  in  1830  or  1834. 

Jujo       1 694- 1 742  Hojo    died  in  1856,  leaving 

no  descendant.4 

In  addition  to  the  Sixteen  Masters  there  are  innumerable  Goto 
workers  of  subsidiary  families,  some  of  whom  will  be  mentioned  in  this 
chapter,  and  others  who  will  be  commented  upon  under  the  respective 
schools  of  which  they  were  the  founders  or  members,  such  as  Nagatsune 
of  the  Ichinomiya  school. 

1For  methods  of  purifying  and  coloring  gold  used  by  the  Goto,  cf.  A. 
Mosle,  Sword  Ornaments  of  the  Goto  Shirobei  Family  (Transactions  of  Japan 
Soc,  Vol.  VIII,  pp.  188-208). 

'Op.  cit.,  p.  195. 

'Certain  authenticated  specimens  of  the  first  six  masters  are  described  by 
Brinkley  (Japan  and  China,  Vol.  VII,  pp.  256-258). 

*A11  of  the  sixteen  masters  used  other  names,  which  may  be  found  in 
S.  Hara  (Die  Meister  der  japanischen  Schwertzierathen) . 


o 


HlfEBsmroFiLLia^L^nAflv 


- " 


The  Followers  of  the  Sixteen  Masters  63 

Goto  Denjo,  though  not  among  the  Sixteen  Masters,  was  an  artist  of 
prominence,  and  died  in  1712.  His  signature  appears  on  an  interesting 
tsuba  of  shakudo  which  is  bounded  by  a  gold  rim  (Plate  XIII,  Fig.  1). 
Following  the  signature  is  his  kakihan,  a  parafe  or  written  seal  used  by 
some  artists  as  the  sole  signature,  but  more  often  employed  as  here  in 
conjunction  with  the  name  (see  Plate  LXI).  The  design  on  the 
tsuba  is  brought  out  in  high  relief  of  gold,  silver,  copper,  and  shakudo 
set  upon  a  ground  of  nanako.  Beneath  an  old  pine-tree  with  golden 
needles  stands  the  Chinese  sage,  Fung  Kan,  known  in  Japan  as  Bukan 
Zenji.  He  is  one  of  the  rishi  or  sennin  (sien  nung),  beings  endowed 
with  supernatural  powers  who  enjoy  rest  for  a  period  after  death,  being 
for  a  time  exempt  from  transmigration.  "They  are  nearly  all  Taoist  or 
Tao-Buddhistic  myths  of  Chinese  invention,  but  some  may  be  traced  to 
Indian  sources,  and  a  few  are  of  native  origin."1  Those  most  often 
met  with  in  Japanese  art  are  the  human  rishi  who,  in  order  to  obtain 
immortality  retire  into  mountains,  where  they  practice  magic  powers, 
and  living  in  the  simple  garb  of  the  Chinese  sage,  have  time  for  contem- 
plation. Bukan  Zenji  is  always  accompanied  by  a  tiger,  here  sculptured 
from  the  shakudo  with  stripes  of  gold  hirazogan.2  Silver  has  been 
effectively  inlaid  to  represent  a  waterfall  toward  which  Bukan  Zenji  is 
turning,  and  which  breaks  in  curling  waves  of  silver  at  his  feet.  The 
figure  with  robes  of  shakudo  and  gold,  and  face  inlaid  in  copper,  is 
modelled  with  that  stiffness  characteristic  of  many  of  the  early  Goto 
workers. 

In  contrast  to  this  rather  crude  presentation  is  the  more  freely 
sculptured  figure  on  the  tsuba  by  Renjo,  tenth  master  of  the  Goto  fam- 
ily, who  died  in  1709  at  the  age  of  eighty-two  (Plate  XIII,  Fig.  2).  He 
is  said  to  have  been  the  first  master  to  take  up  his  residence  in  Yedo, 
where  he  worked  for  the  shogun,  creating  new  models  and  imitating  a 
more  elaborate  style.  Life  at  the  shogun's  court  under  Tokugawa  Iye- 
mitsu  (1623-51)  and  his  immediate  successors  was  very  luxurious. 
Pure  gold  was  used  profusely  on  sword-fittings,  and  tsuba  for  the 
daisho  were  decorated  with  all  sorts  of  motives.  The  subject  chosen 
by  Renjo  is  Nakasaina  Sonja  (Sanskrit:  Nagasena),  one  of  the  Sixteen 
Rakan  (Sanskrit:  Arhat),  a  group  of  disciples  of  Qakyamuni  Buddha. 
Wearing  the  Buddhist  cloak  attached  at  one  shoulder,  leaving  one  arm 
bare,  Nagasena  holds  aloft  his  bowl  from  which  he  has  power  to  draw 

1 W.  Anderson,  Cat.  of  Japanese  and  Chinese  Paintings  in  British  Museum, 
P-  54- 

*A  common  subject  is  the  Four  Sleepers:  Bukan  Zenji  and  the  tiger  with 
Kanzan  and  Jittoku,  two  younger  rishi,  who  are  represented  on  Plate  xxix,  Fig.  1. 


64  Japanese  Sword-Mounts 

forth  water.  Delightedly  he  looks  up  toward  the  rising  silver  stream, 
while  overhead  a  gnarled  pine-tree  with  tiny  cones  of  copper  bends  down 
toward  the  mountain  torrent  by  which  he  rests.  The  tsuba  is  of  kara- 
kane  with  a  surface  decoration  imitating  stone  and  known  as  ishime. 

Though  nanako  continued  to  be  the  ground  preferred  by  the  Goto, 
ishime  was  also  produced  by  them,  and  from  this  time  on  is  utilized  by 
all  the  metal-workers.  The  term  ishime  has  come  to  include  not  only 
surfaces  reproducing  stone,  but  such  treatment  as  kashiji  ("pear 
ground")  ishime,  which  gives  a  surface  suggesting  pear  rind;  hari 
("needle")  ishime,  a  surface  pricked  with  a  very  fine  needle-like  point; 
gama  ("toad")  ishime,  intended  to  represent  the  skin  of  a  toad;  tsuya 
("lustrous")  ishime,  produced  with  a  chisel  sharpened  so  that  its  traces 
leave  a  brilliant  appearance;  orikuchi  ("broken-tool")  ishime,  a  rough 
surface  produced  with  a  jagged  tool,  and  gosame  ishime,  which  resembles 
the  plaited  surface  of  a  straw  mat.1 

The  kozuka  reproduced  on  the  plate  with  the  foregoing  tsuba 
(Plate  XIII,  Fig.  3)  is  a  product  of  Goto  Mitsuyoshi,  also  known  as 
Shinjo,  the  fifteenth  master  of  the  Goto  family,  who  worked  in  Yedo  in 
the  late  eighteenth  and  early  nineteenth  century.  As  is  often  true  of 
both  kozuka  and  kogai,  the  decorated  plate  is  separate  piece,  in  this  case 
set  into  a  bronze  handle,  gilded.  The  plate  is  of  shakudo,  with  a  ground 
of  fine  nanako  in  straight  lines.  In  high  relief  of  shakudo  the  artist 
has  modelled  a  tobacco-pipe,  with  tip  and  bowl  of  silver.  Around  the 
centre  of  the  stem  is  wound  a  rope  taper  in  relief  of  gold,  and  nearby 
are  several  silver  petals  of  the  cherry  blossom. 

Another  kozuka  (Fig.  4),  also  with  shakudo-nanako  ground,  has 
a  masterful  little  piece  of  sculpture  on  the  lower  part  of  the  narrow 
field.  It  was  made  by  Hisakiyo,  a  member  of  the  Goto  family,  who 
worked  in  Kanagawa  in  the  province  of  Kaga  in  the  middle  of  the 
eighteenth  century.  The  artist  has  reproduced  one  of  the  Rikishi  or 
Ni-6  ("Two  Deva  Kings")  or  temple  guardians,  seen  before  the  outer 
gates  of  Buddhist  temples.  They  are  usually  colossal  and  hideous  images 
with  ferocious  faces  and  hands  outstretched  or  grasping  a  mace  or  tokko 
(vajra,  "thunderbolt").  They  are  nude  to  the  waist,  save  for  a  thin 
strip  of  drapery  which  passes  over  the  shoulder.  The  lower  portion  of 
the  body  is  partially  draped.  One  of  the  pair  is  represented  with  tightly 
compressed  lips,  and  is  often  painted  green ;  the  other  with  open  mouth 
is  usually  red  in  color.  They  are  popularly  identified  as  Narayana  and 
Vajrapani.  Narayana,  otherwise  known  as  Puruha,  is  an  Indian  god, 

*F.  Brinkley,  Japan  and  China,  Vol.  VII,  pp.  240-241. 


The  Followers  of  the  Sixteen  Masters  65 

who  represents  a  variation  of  Brahma,  the  supreme  deity  as  creator 
of  the  world.  Vajrapani  is  an  incarnation  of  Qakra  Indra,  as  chief  of 
the  Yakshas,  who  vowed  to  protect  the  teaching  of  Buddha.  The  thun- 
der bolt  (vajra-kila)  which  he  holds  is  said  to  represent  his  intention 
of  destroying  any  one  hostile  to  Buddhism.  One  may  compare  the 
descriptions  of  the  two  famous  statues  of  the  Ni-6  at  the  temple  of 
Todaiji.1  The  Ni-6  are  not  to  be  confused  with  the  Shi  Tenno,  "Four 
Kings  of  Heaven,"  who  guard  the  four  cardinal  points  of  the  world  of 
Mount  Sumeru  in  Indian  mythology.  They  are  known  in  Japan  as 
Bishamonten  (Vaiqravana),  Jikokuten  (Dhritarashtra),  Zochoten 
(Viriidhaka)  and  Komokuten  (Virupaksha),  and  are  generally  repre- 
sented as  armored  knights.2 

The  muscular  body  of  the  Ni-6  on  this  kozuka  (Plate  XIII,  Fig.  4) 
is  in  high  relief  of  copper,  the  flashing  eye  is  inlaid  in  gold  and  shakudo. 
The  lower  garment,  which  has  cloud  designs  incised  in  kebori,  is  of 
gold,  as  are  the  long  streamers  which  float  upward  from  the  shoulders. 
The  hands  are  cleverly  modelled  and,  though  appearing  cramped,  due  to 
the  limitation  of  the  field,  express  in  their  position  the  attitude  of 
menace. 

A  typical  Goto  figure  is  that  to  be  seen  on  the  unsigned  tsuba 
(Plate  XIV,  Fig.  2),  which  is  of  shakudo  and  of  late  eighteenth-century 
workmanship.  The  field  is  interestingly  broken  into  patches  of  nanako, 
which  suggest  clouds  and  a  river  bank,  and  the  centre  portion  is  sculp- 
tured in  a  formal  presentation  of  waves  with  breaking  crests  in  relief  of 
silver.  The  subject,  which  is  one  of  the  most  popular  motives  in  Japanese 
art,  is  also  the  theme  of  the  noted  No  drama,  "the  Battle  of  Gojo 
Bridge."  The  participants  in  this  combat  were  Benkei,  a  boisterous  priest, 
and  Yoshitsune  (1159-89),  the  most  deeply  beloved  member  of  the 
famous  Minamoto  family  and  a  brother  to  Yoritomo,  the  founder  of  the 
shogunate.  This  incident  occurred  when  Yoshitsune  was  but  a  youth  and 
known  by  the  name  Ushiwaka  ("Young  Ox).  Coming  to  Gojo  bridge 
one  night,  he  was  challenged  by  one,  Benkei,  a  strong  daredevil  who, 
though  a  wandering  priest,  had  fought  with  all  the  passers-by  and 
captured  through  his  skill  and  strength  nine  hundred  and  ninety-nine 
choice  swords.  Ushiwaka,  it  is  said,  had  been  trained  in  fencing  by 
the  Tengu,  a  bird-like  spirit,  and  in  his  agile  movements,  leaping 
from  post  to  rail,  he  kept  the  cumbersome  Benkei  at  arms  length 
until  he  defeated  him.    Benkei  threw  down  his  eight  weapons  and  won 

*S.  Tajima,  Selected  Relics  of  Japanese  Art,  Vol.  II,  Plate  xvni. 
'Op.  cit.,  Vol.  I,  Plates  n-rv. 


66  Japanese  Sword-Mounts 

over  by  admiration,  became  the  faithful  retainer  of  Yoshitsune  follow- 
ing him  in  all  of  his  exploits  and  battles. 

The  youthful  figure  of  Yoshitsune,  armed  with  his  sword,  is  here  to 
be  seen  poised  for  a  moment  on  the  rail  of  Gojo  bridge,  which  the  artist 
has  made  in  relief  of  gold.  Yoshitsune's  garments  are  of  shakudo  and 
gold  worked  out  in  great  detail,  even  to  the  high,  black-lacquered  clogs 
(geta)  which  are  realistically  sculptured  in  shakudo.  Four  of  Benkei's 
weapons,  an  axe,  a  hammer,  a  pitchfork,  and  a  long-handled  saw,  lie 
upon  the  ground.  On  the  reverse  there  is  a  pine-tree  in  relief  of 
shakudo  with  golden  needles. 

Among  the  many  groups  which  are  offsprings  of  the  Goto  school  is 
that  of  Nomura,  which  was  founded  by  Masatoki,  a  pupil  of  Tokujo. 
He  lived  in  the  seventeenth  century  and  worked  either  in  Awa  or  Yedo. 
One  of  the  outstanding  artists  of  the  Nomura  family  is  Tsu  Jimpo 
(1720-62),  a  son  of  Tsujo,  the  eleventh  of  the  so-called  Sixteen  Masters. 
He  was  a  clever  craftsman  whose  work  was  much  imitated  during  his 
lifetime  and  an  example  of  which  is  among  the  specimens  in  this  col- 
lection. It  is  a  fuchikashira  of  shakudo  with  nanako  ground,  depicting 
a  lioness  and  four  cubs  crouching  in  a  cave  beneath  an  old  pine-tree. 
Sculptured  entirely  in  the  dark  alloy,  it  is  difficult  to  reproduce  by 
photograph. 

Toward  the  end  of  the  eighteenth  and  the  beginning  of  the  nine- 
teenth century,  a  group  of  masters  of  the  Nomura  family  concentrated 
upon  the  production  of  menuki,  kogai,  kozuka,  and  fuchikashira,  no 
tsuba  by  them  being  found.  The  motives  for  decoration  were  mainly 
plants  and  flowers,  sometimes  animals,  but  never  human  figures.1  To 
this  group  belonged  Nomura  Masayoshi,  who  also  used  the  names 
Ichiunsai  and  Kotoji.  He  was  the  son  of  Masahide  and  lived  during  the 
first  half  of  the  nineteenth  century.  He  has  left  many  beautiful  bits  of 
sculpture,  such  as  the  characteristic  kozuka  of  shibuichi  (Plate  XIV, 
Fig.  3),  whereon  are  pictured  in  beautiful  detail  a  thicket  of  spring 
flowers :  fukujuso  (Adonis  sibirica),  omodaka  (Alisima  plantago),  botan 
(Paeonia  moutan),  hagi  (Lespedeza) ,  kikyo  (Platycodon  grandi flora), 
and  suisen  (Narcissus  tazetta). 

The  Goto  artists  held  a  very  high  place  in  this  field  of  art  until 
swords  ceased  to  be  worn.  The  nineteenth-century  master  Ichijo  and 
his  followers  will  be  dealt  with  in  a  subsequent  chapter,  for  the  seven- 
teenth and  eighteenth  centuries  still  hold  many  other  schools  whose  work 
must  be  outlined  in  detail. 

*G.  Jacoby,  Japanische  Schwertzierathen,  p.  104. 


FIELD  MUSEUM  OF  NATURAL  HISTORY. 


ANTHROPOLOGY,   VOL.   XVI,   PL.   XIV. 


1-2,  TSUBA  OF  GOTO  SCHOOL  (pp.  62,  63).    3,   KOZUKA  BY  NOMURA  MASAYOSHI  (p.  66). 


gpaiSjnOFJLL«16^L15BA«V 


--**•-**-** 


VII.    THE  UMETADA  FAMILY.     THE  ITO  SCHOOL 

In  the  record  Kinko  Tanki,1  Umetada  Shichizaemon  Munetoki  in 
1827  stated  that  the  Umetada  family  originated  at  a  remote  period,  cer- 
tain members  being  famous  swordsmiths  in  the  tenth  century.  The 
first  artist  to  make  sword-fittings  is  said  to  have  been  Shigeyoshi  Hiko- 
jiro,  eighteenth  member  of  the  family  which  was  then  known  as  Tachi- 
bana.  He  lived  in  the  fourteenth  century,  and  is  reported  to  have  worked 
for  the  Ashikaga  shogun,  Yoshimasa.  An  interesting  story  is  told 
about  his  successor,  Shigemune,  who  wrote  the  name  Umetada  ("many 
plum-trees  field").  It  is  said  that  there  was  a  pond  on  his  estate  which 
he  wished  to  fill  up ;  so  he  conceived  the  idea  of  putting  an  image  in  the 
centre,  thus  giving  passers-by  a  target  at  which  to  throw  stones.  The 
hole  was  soon  filled,  and  Shigemune's  clever  scheme  became  known  to 
the  emperor,  who  summoned  him  and  ordered  him  to  alter  his  name  to 
another  writing  of  Umetada  ("loyally  filled  up").  In  later  years,  the 
writing  of  the  name  was  again  changed,  when  it  was  pointed  out  that 
this  combination  of  characters  could  be  construed  as  meaning  "bury 
loyalty"  or  "loyally  buried."  The  final  writing  is  Umetada  which,  trans- 
lated, reads  "loyal  plum  tree."2 

These  three  combinations  of  characters  appear  on  sword-fittings 
made  by  the  Umetada,  and,  as  though  these  were  not  enough,  an 
eighteenth-century  artist  ingeniously  substituted  a  plum-blossom  (ume) 
incised  or  inlaid  before  the  character  tada. 

Umetada  tsuba  stand  as  highly  in  the  eyes  of  the  Japanese  as  the 
products  of  Kaneiye  and  Nobuiye.  Especially  is  this  true  of  those  made 
by  the  master  craftsman  Shigeyoshi  II,  Myoju,  sometimes  called  Hiko- 
jiro.  He  was  the  son  of  Shigetaka  and  lived  from  1558  to  163 1  in 
Kyoto.  He  originated  a  method  of  flat  inlay  of  shakudo  on  fields  of 
copper  and  brass.  He  served  under  Hideyoshi  and  Hidetsugu,  and 
was  succeeded  by  his  adopted  son,  Shigeyoshi  II,  who  wrote  the  name 
with  different  characters  (see  Index)  and  who,  on  account  of  the  excel- 
lence of  his  work,  received  the  title  Hokyo,  an  honorary  appellation 
meaning  "Bridge  of  the  Law,"  of  Buddhistic  origin.  A  younger 
brother,  Iyetaka,  succeeded  Shigeyoshi  II  (known  as  Myoju)  and  set 
up  a  studio  in  Yedo,  where  for  several  generations  this  family  worked. 

'A  condensed  version  is  given  by  H.  Joly  (Japanese  Sword  Mounts  in  the 
Hawkshaw  Collection,  pp.  16-18). 

'  Op.  cti.,  p.  17.    See  Index  of  Signatures  for  the  various  characters. 

67 


68  Japanese  Sword-Mounts 

Naritsugu,  an  eighteenth-century  artist,  and  Ichio  of  the  nineteenth 
century,  are  among  the  more  recent  well-known  artists  of  this  group. 

Many  of  the  Umetada  tsuba  are  of  iron  inlaid  in  gold,  silver,  or 
copper,  with  extraordinarily  beautiful  effects.  Some  are  chiselled  in 
openwork,  others  are  solid  with  designs  rendered  in  low  relief  or  in 
intaglio.    The  latter  method  was  masterfully  practised  by  Ichio. 

On  Plate  XV  is  reproduced  a  tsuba  which,  though  unsigned,  re- 
sembles the  work  of  Myoju  or  one  of  his  close  followers.  When 
acquired  in  Japan,  it  was  accompanied  by  a  series  of  certificates,  ori- 
kami,  one  of  which,  of  scroll  form,  details  a  most  interesting  story  of  its 
history.  Owing  to  the  intrinsic  value  of  this  tsuba,  technical  and 
artistic,  this  document  might  be  given  serious  credence.  A  condensed 
account  made  from  a  translation  of  the  scroll  is  here  inserted. 

"This  copper  inlaid  tsuba  was  made  by  a  tsuba  maker  at  Daisen  in 
the  province  of  Hoki.1  In  his  great  enthusiasm  for  the  perfection  of 
his  art,  the  maker  took  a  vow  neither  to  eat  or  sleep  for  a  hundred  days 
while  he  worked.  He  died  before  the  vow  was  fulfilled.  His  wife  in 
great  sorrow  determined  to  finish  the  tsuba,  and,  praying  at  the  shrine, 
had  a  vision  of  the  god.  She  finished  the  tsuba,  which  is  the  only  one 
she  ever  made.  The  sickles  and  flute  inlaid  represent  the  treasures  of 
the  shrine.  The  birds  are  messengers  of  the  god,  and  the  hollow  repre- 
sents the  pond  near  the  shrine.  The  tsuba  was  the  valued  possession  of 
Tokugawa  Iyeyasu,  and  was  given  by  him  to  one  of  his  faithful  samurai, 
Nakamura  Shirozaemon.  It  was  handed  down  to  a  grandson  of  Shiro- 
zaemon's,  who,  when  imprisoned,  gave  it  away." 

The  description  on  the  scroll  accords  well  with  the  decoration  on  the 
tsuba.  On  the  obverse  side  flatly  inlaid  in  the  copper  which  has  been 
skillfully  molded  so  as  to  give  the  wax-like  appearance  characteristic  of 
Myoju's  work,  are  two  weapons  of  sickle-shape  known  as  kusari 
("chain")  kama  ("hoe").  The  upper  one,  with  chain  missing,  is  of 
shakudo  with  an  edge  of  silver;  the  lower  one  is  of  shakudo  with  a 
blade  of  gold,  and  is  attached  by  a  golden  chain  to  a  small  rectangular 
piece.  This  type  of  weapon  is  said  to  have  been  used  by  women  in 
defensive  warfare,  being  flung  at  the  enemy  and  pulled  back  by  means 
of  the  chain  which  the  owner  held.  Laufer2  has  given  a  full  description 
and  drawing  of  a  Chinese  weapon  called  the  fie  lien  kia  pang,  which 


^he  lofty  mountain  Daisen  or  Oyama  is  believed  to  be  the  dwelling  place  of 
the  Shinto  god  Onamuji-no-Mikoto.  In  the  fourteenth  century  there  were  two 
hundred  and  fifty  shrines  on  the  mountain.  It  is  not  known  whether  Myoju  ever 
worked  in  this  retreat,  which  was  some  distance  from  Kyoto  where  he  lived. 

'Chinese  Clay  Figures,  pp.  249,  251. 


FIELD  MUSEUM  OF  NATURAL  HISTORY. 


ANTHROPOLOGY,   VOL.   XVI,    PL.    XV. 


r 


•\r 


w 


TSUBA  ATTRIBUTED  TO  UMETADA  MYOJU  (p.  68). 


gBfQSnrYOFUJLW^tKHIABY 


I  ♦ 


\ki  A 


i 


The  Umetada  Family  69 

closely  resembles  the  object  delineated  on  this  Japanese  tsuba,  although 
the  striking  part  on  the  Chinese  weapon  resembles  a  sharpened  cudgel  or 
flail  rather  than  a  scythe.  He  relates  that  such  a  weapon  is  at  present 
used  in  Peking  in  fencing  bouts,  and  that  it  is  there  known  by  the  name 
"threshing  flail."  A  Chinese  work  is  referred  to  wherein  it  is  said  that 
such  weapons  were  manipulated  by  women  on  the  walls  to  resist  in- 
vaders. The  fact  that  threshing  was  to  a  great  extent  done  by  the  women 
in  China  and  Japan  may  be  an  explanation  for  the  adoption  of  the  flail 
and  sickle  as  a  weapon.  In  a  surimono  (card  of  greeting)  in  this 
Museum,  Kunisada  has  depicted  a  famous  heroine  of  the  twelfth  cen- 
tury, Tomoye  Gozen,  hurling  a  kusari  katna  at  her  approaching  enemy. 

On  the  reverse  of  the  tsuba  under  consideration,  on  the  lower  edge, 
there  is  a  depression  which,  as  we  are  told  by  the  orikami,  represents  a 
pond  near  the  shrine.  Two  flying  birds  are  inlaid  above  in  gold  hira- 
zogan,  and  at  the  right  is  a  shakudo  flute  with  golden  stops.  This  tsuba 
must  have  seen  service,  for  it  is  carefully  repaired  in  two  places  on  the 
reverse  side  with  plugs  of  pewter. 

The  greater  number  of  the  Umetada  artists  worked  in  iron,  leaving 
the  copper  grounds  with  alloyed  inlays  to  Myoju  and  his  immediate  fol- 
lowers. The  second  writing  of  Umetada  "loyally  filled  up"  is  the  sole 
inscription  on  a  fuchikashira  of  iron,  which  is  probably  a  product  of 
the  late  seventeenth  century  (Plate  XVI,  Fig.  1).  On  the  head-piece 
two  feathered  arrows  with  silver  heads  are  laid  crossways  and  tied  to- 
gether by  a  golden  cord.  On  the  clamp  two  more  arrows  of  the  same 
form  are  held  in  place  side  by  side  in  a  confining  brace,  also  tied  with 
a  cord  of  gold.  The  heads  of  the  arrows  are  leaf-shaped,  and  are 
skillfully  chiselled  in  openwork  with  one  of  the  many  beautiful  designs 
to  be  seen  on  these  artistic  weapons.1 

A  kozuka  (Plate  XVI,  Fig.  2),  entirely  of  iron  and  signed  "Umetada 
Narimasa,"  is  covered  over  with  a  sculpturing  of  full  blown  peonies  with 
fine  lines  of  kebori  on  the  leaves.  This  artist  is  not  listed  by  S.  Hara. 
and  it  is  not  known  when  or  where  he  lived.  It  will  be  noted,  however, 
that  he  used  the  "loyal  plum-tree"  or  third  writing  of  Umetada,  and 
therefore  is  likely  to  belong  to  the  eighteenth  century. 

"Muneyoshi  residing  at  Toto"  (Yedo)  is  the  inscription  of  an  eight- 
eenth-century artist,  who  used  the  plum-blossom  (utne)  incised  before 
the  character  tada.  He  has  left  an  excellent  example  of  his  skill  in  the 
tsuba  in  Plate  XVI,  Fig.  3.  It  is  of  brown  iron,  and  is  of  mokko  form 
with  a  raised  rim  neatly  chiselled.    On  the  edge  are  patches  of  the  swas- 

*Cf.  E.  Scidmore,  The  Japanese  Yano  Ye  (Transactions  Japan  Soc,  Vol.  VI, 
PP.  356-373). 


70  Japanese  Sword-Mounts 

tika  and  key-pattern  in  gold  hirazogan.  On  the  obverse  side  at  the 
right  and  partly  covering  the  opening  for  the  kozuka  is  the  seated  figure 
of  an  old,  but  happy  monkey-trainer  holding  in  one  hand  a  wand,  in  the 
other  the  cord  which  guides  his  pet.  His  face  (in  relief  of  shibuichi), 
is  an  interesting  and  lifelike  portrait ;  his  cap  is  gold.  His  robe  of  shaku- 
do,  adorned  with  crests  inlaid  in  silver,  copper,  and  gold,  is  surmounted 
by  the  kamishimo,  which,  during  the  Tokugawa  period,  was  worn  on 
certain  public  occasions,  not  necessarily  allied  with  the  court.  The 
monkey,  modelled  in  high  relief  of  shibuichi,  wears  a  golden  coat  and 
plays  upon  a  little  drum  on  which  the  mitsu-tomoye  is  inlaid  in  silver. 
The  back  of  the  man's  head  and  the  tip  of  the  monkey's  nose  may  be 
seen  through  the  riohitsu  on  the  reverse  side,  which  is  plain,  save  for  a 
stick  with  a  ring  handle,  which  is  inlaid  in  relief  of  silver  and  copper. 
The  signature  Ume  (in  form  a  plum-blossom)  tada  is  sharply  cut  on  the 
reverse. 

This  same  fanciful  writing  of  the  family  name  has  been  skillfully 
cut  on  the  obverse  side  of  another  tsuba  of  iron  (Plate  XVI,  Fig.  4). 
It  is  the  only  signature  on  the  guard  which  likely  is  the  product  of  Ichio, 
the  nineteenth-century  representative  of  this  well-known  group  of  metal 
craftsmen.  The  ground  has  been  chiselled  into  a  rough  appearance  sug- 
gesting a  patch  of  soil  over  which  realistically  sculptured  insects  move. 
Two  large  crickets  in  high  relief  of  shibuichi,  with  heads  and  antennae 
of  gold,  approach  a  cluster  of  golden  eggs  jealously  presided  over  by 
an  ant.  On  the  reverse,  five  more  of  these  insects  are  inlaid  in  relief  of 
gold,  and  several  gold  and  silver  eggs  are  scattered  over  the  ground.  The 
holes  for  the  kozuka  and  udenuki  are  outlined  with  gold  nunome- 
zdgan ;  the  edge  of  the  tsuba  is  decorated  with  the  tortoise-shell  pattern. 

A  pupil  of  Umetada  Myoju,  by  name  Masatsugu,  in  1600,  founded  a 
school  which  bore  his  family  name  Ito.  He  inaugurated  an  intricate 
style  of  saw-cutting  done  on  iron  and  shakudo  tsuba,  a  style  which  is 
known  as  ltd  sukashi  ("ornamental  openwork")  or  Odawara  (name  of 
the  village  in  which  he  worked)  sukashi.  He  is  said  to  have  settled  in 
Odawara  of  Sagami  Province,  the  old  capital  of  the  Hojo  regents,  but 
he  is  also  reported  to  have  been  a  great  wanderer ;  and  such  would  seem 
to  be  the  case,  since  similar  tsuba  with  saw-cutting  suggestive  of  his  style 
appeared  in  many  parts  of  Japan  in  the  eighteenth  century.  Very  often 
Ito  or  Odawara  tsuba  are  listed  under  the  heading  of  Bushu,  the 
province  next  to  Sagami,  where  several  Ito  artists  worked  in  the  city  of 
Yedo.  However,  it  has  been  thought  well  to  associate  this  offshoot  of 
the  Umetada  family  with  the  parent  tree,  since  almost  all  of  schools  in 
the  eighteenth   and   nineteenth   centuries   had    representatives   in   the 


«flfEBSirrCfU^>LiaiiArty 


The  Ito  School  71 

shogun's  capital,  and  the  work  of  all  might  just  as  logically  be  desig- 
nated "Bushu" ;  that  term,  however,  will  be  reserved  for  a  limited  group 
who  did  not  have  a  distinct  style. 

Masakuni  I  and  II,  Masayoshi,  and  Masatsune,  are  among  the  mem- 
bers of  the  Ito  school  whose  work  is  much  sought  after.  The  last  men- 
tioned of  these  four  artists  worked  for  the  shogun  up  until  his  death  in 
[724.  Four  unsigned  pieces  have  been  chosen  for  reproduction  (Plates 
XVII-XVIII).  These  admirably  illustrate  the  triumph  of  this  school 
of  artists  who  sought  to  produce  tsuba  which  at  one  and  the  same  time 
would  be  guards  affording  adequate  protection,  lightness  of  weight,  and 
beauty  of  design. 

All-over  patterns  forming  a  strong  network  have  been  utilized  for 
the  fields  chiselled  in  two  iron  tsuba  (Plate  XVII,  Figs.  1  and  2),  both 
of  which  may  be  assigned  to  the  eighteenth  century.  The  shippo  tsunagi 
("endless  circle  of  the  seven  treasures")  fills  the  field  of  the  circular 
guard,  while  the  same  motive  more  severely  formalized  is  also  chiselled 
within  the  narrow  rim  of  the  mokko-shaped  tsuba.  The  edge  of  this  latter 
guard  is  inlaid  with  the  key  pattern  in  delicate  gold  hirazogan.  These 
intricate  perforated  patterns  are  marvels  of  technique,  possibly  excelled 
solely  by  such  other  Ito  works  wherein  stems  of  plants  or  similar  designs 
oftentimes  not  exceeding  1/250  of  an  inch  are  cut  in  the  solid  iron. 
W.  Gowland1  tells  us  that  "these  were  produced  by  a  very  laborious 
method  of  procedure.  A  minute  hole  was  first  drilled  in  the  iron  with  a 
fine  steel  wire  moistened  with  oil  and  powdered  garnets  or  silicious  rock ; 
the  hole  was  then  elongated  into  a  slit  by  means  of  another  fine  steel  wire 
used  as  a  saw,  also  moistened  with  oil  and  the  above  powder.  These 
cuts  were  further  continued  with  flat  wires  and  were  then  reduced  to 
the  extreme  degree  of  fineness  required  by  hammering  both  sides  of  the 
metal  until  they  were  sufficiently  closed.  The  sides  of  the  cuts  were 
kept  parallel  by  rubbing  them  from  time  to  time  with  flat  wires  of  steel 
and  grinding  powder.  Iron  guards  by  the  best  craftsmen  were  never 
cast ;  they  were  always  of  wrought  iron." 

The  water-plantain  (Alisima  plantago)  or  omodaka,  a  plant  utilized 
as  the  basis  for  many  decorative  patterns,  has  been  cut  into  the  iron  tsuba 
(Plate  XVII,  Fig.  3)  by  means  of  the  process  described  above.  Though 
this  specimen  ornamented  with  the  slender  stems  and  water  lines  is  of 
admirable  execution,  when  compared  with  many  of  the  Ito  saw-cuts,  it 
appears  coarse  and  lacking  in  grace. 

That  most  popular  motive,  the  chrysanthemum  (kiku),  very  often 

Petals  and  Metal  Working  in  Old  Japan  (Transactions  Japan  Soc, 
Vol.  XIII,  p.  51). 


72  Japanese  Sword-Mounts 

appears  on  sword-fittings  sometimes  inlaid  in  precious  metals,  or  outlined 
in  gold  hirazogan,  or  again  chiselled  in  openwork,  as  is  the  case  on  the 
tsuba  of  iron  (Plate  XVIII,  Fig.  i),  where  a  blossom  of  sixty-two  petals 
forms  the  light  guard.  The  imperial  kiku  crest  (mon)  is  of  three  forms : 
a  single  flower  of  sixteen  petals,  a  double  flower  with  the  rounded  tips 
of  sixteen  under  petals  appearing  between  those  of  the  principal  series, 
and  a  flower  of  thirty-two  petals,  an  adaptation  from  the  double  form. 
Some  experts  have  interpreted  this  mon  as  a  sun  with  divergent  rays,  an 
evolution  from  the  hi  no  maru  ("circle  of  the  red  sun")  to  be  seen  on 
the  national  flag.  As  the  descendant  of  the  Sun  Goddess,  this  would  be 
the  logical  insignia  for  the  emperor  to  adopt;  however,  such  forms  as 
this  flower  of  sixty-two  petals  are  undoubtedly  representations  of  the 
chrysanthemum  which  is  the  basis  of  several  crests  other  than  the 
imperial  one. 


VIII.    FOREIGN  INFLUENCE  ILLUSTRATED  IN  HIRADO, 

NAMBAN,  AND  HIZEN  TSUBA 

JAKUSHI  AND  SOTEN  OF  HIKONE 

In  the  late  sixteenth  and  early  seventeenth  century  certain  sword- 
fittings  began  to  appear  which  registered  strong  traces  of  foreign  in- 
fluence, both  Chinese  and  European.  Two  great  events  in  that  period, 
the  arrival  of  the  Portuguese  in  1542  and  the  conquest  of  Korea  by 
Hideyoshi  in  1592,  brought  with  them  into  Japan  innovations  which 
rapidly  had  strong  effects  on  many  of  the  arts  and  crafts.  European 
characters,  in  monograms  or  inscriptions,  figures  of  foreigners,  and 
coats  of  arms  were  soon  woven  into  purely  Japanese  designs  in  the  most 
itigenious  manner ;  even  the  Umetada  artists  combined  European  letters 
in  some  of  the  decorations  on  their  sword-guards.  Grounds  simulating 
leather  became  very  popular  both  in  metal  work  and  lacquer,  presumably 
under  Portuguese  influence;  and,  as  has  already  been  remarked,  inlay  in 
iron  noticeably  increased  with  the  introduction  of  European  fire-arms. 

Two  types  of  sword-fittings  grouped  under  the  names  Hirado  and 
Namban  reflect  to  a  marked  degree  these  foreign  currents.  In  the 
town  of  Hirado  in  Hizen  worked  a  coterie  of  craftsmen  who  specialized 
in  brass  and  iron  sword-fittings  chased  with  designs  of  dragons,  waves, 
and  flowers  almost  always  combined  with  European  letters.  Those 
which  are  signed  usually  have  upon  them  the  names  of  Kunishige,  an 
artist,  who  must  have  been  the  leading  spirit  of  the  group.  In  the 
seventeenth  and  eighteenth  centuries,  Hirado  like  Nagasaki,  became 
the  market-place  for  many  "ready  made  articles"  (shiiremono) ,  intended 
for  the  swords  of  the  merchants  and  lower  samurai,  and  also  to  satisfy 
the  demands  of  the  foreigners  who  might  carry  them  home. 

The  type  of  tsuba  known  as  Namban  was  likewise  made  by  the 
hundreds  and  imported  to  some  extent.  The  word  Namban  meaning 
"southern  barbarians"  was  first  used  by  the  Chinese  to  describe  all 
aboriginal  tribes  inhabiting  the  southern  part  of  their  country.1  In 
Japan  from  the  sixteenth  century  on  it  designated  all  foreigners,  Portu- 
guese, Hollanders,  as  well  as  other  Europeans.  The  word  has  also  been 
applied  to  a  peculiar  kind  of  hard  iron,  harder  than  ordinary  iron,  but 


1  Cf.  Chinese  Pottery  in  the  Philippines,  pp.  30-32   (Field  Museum  Publica- 
tion, Anthr.  Series,  Vol.  XII,  No.  1). 

73 


74  Japanese  Sword-Mounts 

not  as  brittle  as  steel.  It  may  have  been  imported  from  the  Malay 
Islands,  Java,  or  India.1  At  any  rate,  it  was  utilized  effectively  for  the 
production  of  the  early  so-called  Namban  tsuba,  the  date  of  which  has 
been  fixed  by  most  writers  as  late  sixteenth  century.  While  some  of 
the  designs  on  these  guards  plainly  show  European  influence,  such  as 
figures,  Dutch  boats,  and  birds,  for  the  most  part  Namban  tsuba  are 
thoroughly  Chinese  in  impression,  and  are  combinations  of  intricately 
chiselled  designs  of  dragons  and  tendrils  with  the  jewel  appearing  some- 
where in  the  scheme.  Guards  of  this  type,  on  account  of  their  Chinese 
character,  are  quite  often  called  Kannon  or  Kant  on  tsuba.  In  some  cases 
the  design  itself  is  beautifully  proportioned  and  therefore  appealing; 
for  the  most  part,  however,  the  admiration  aroused  for  these  tsuba  is 
due  to  the  technique  displayed  in  the  skillful  undercutting  of  the  tendrils 
and  dragons  which  are  intricately  interlaced.  The  two  Namban  tsuba  on 
Plate  XVIII,  while  similar  in  their  general  effect,  have  distinguishing 
characteristics  that  are  of  interest.  Fig.  2  is  round,  of  iron,  with  touches 
of  gold  nunome  and  bounded  by  a  plain  rim. 

The  chiselled  design  is  that  of  two  dragons  affronte  with  a  round 
jewel-like  object  between  them  at  the  top  of  the  tsuba.  At  the  base 
is  a  formalized  presentation  of  the  Chinese  character  shou  ("long  life"). 
The  dragons  are  of  the  five-clawed  imperial  type,  scaled  beings  with 
flaming  appendages,  and  they  are  writhing  through  a  network  of  scrolls, 
which  possibly  represent  clouds ;  the  whole  design  is  carved  in  the  round. 
Of  quite  a  different  form  are  the  two  dragons  in  Fig.  3  of  Plate  XVIII, 
a  tsuba  inclined  more  toward  the  oval  than  the  round  and  decorated  on 
the  chiselled  edge  with  a  pearling  which  represents  the  petals  of  the 
chrysanthemum.  As  is  often  the  case  with  certain  Namban  tsuba,  the 
seppa  dai  is  of  an  ornamental  form  pointed  at  the  top  and  base.  On 
other  tsuba  it  is  squared  and  covered  with  a  wave  design.  The  dragons 
in  this  case  are  more  crudely  drawn  than  those  on  the  circular  guard, 
and  have  tails  of  fan  shape.  They  are  likewise  intertwined  with  a  com- 
plicated scroll  motive,  and  are  facing  a  jewel.  , 

This  ornamentation  of  two  dragons  flying  toward  a  ball  or  flaming 
spiral  is  an  ancient  and  frequent  motive  in  both  Chinese  and  Japanese 
art.  A  common  explanation  in  China  is  the  Buddhistic  idea  of  the  eager 
striving  of  the  dragons  for  the  "pearl  of  perfection,"  thus  identifying 
the  dragon  with  the  Indian  Naga  and  the  ball  with  the  precious  pearl 
(cintamani)  which  grants  all  desires.     In  Japan  the  dragon  generally 

1H.  Joly,  Note  sur  le  fer  et  le  style  namban  (Bull,  de  la  Soc.  Franco- 
Japonaise,  Vol.  XXXIII). 


amERsinoFy^^^^ 


Namban  and  Hizen  Tsuba  75 

represents  the  genius  of  rainfall,  as  may  be  seen  in  the  dragon  festival 
on  the  fifteenth  day  of  the  first  month,  wherein  the  huge  dragon  is  car- 
ried through  the  streets  pursuing  a  ball  which  is  borne  at  the  head  of  the 
procession,  and  which  is  the  symbol  of  the  thunder  that  has  been  belched 
forth  by  the  creature  who  apparently  seeks  to  repossess  it.  M.  De 
Visser1  discusses  at  length  the  meaning  of  the  two  dragons  with  open 
mouths  flying  toward  the  jewel,  quoting  several  opinions  and  citing  a 
certain  Chinese  picture  wherein  two  dragons  face  a  fiery  spiral-shaped 
ball.  Beneath  is  the  title,  "A  couple  of  dragons  facing  the  moon."  This 
interpretation  he  is  inclined  to  favor,  since  he  thinks  it  reasonable  that 
the  dragons,  which  are  the  clouds,  would  wish  to  swallow  the  moon,  the 
symbol  of  fertilizing  rain  thereby  storing  up  the  water  with  which  they 
later  would  bless  the  earth.  He  adds,  "We  know  the  close  connection 
of  dragons  and  pearls  in  both  religions  (Buddhism  and  Taoism).  This 
connection  is  quite  logical ;  for  the  masters  of  the  sea  are,  of  course, 
the  possessors  and  guardians  of  its  treasures.  When  the  clouds  ap- 
proached and  covered  the  moon,  the  ancient  Chinese  may  have  thought 
that  the  dragons  had  seized  and  swallowed  this  pearl,  more  brilliant  than 
all  their  pearls  of  the  sea."  As  to  the  true  meaning  of  the  design, 
whether  the  "jewel"  represents  the  thunder,  the  moon,  or  the  pearl, 
writers  are  still  at  variance ;  the  primary  interest  in  this  study  centers  on 
the  fact  that  this  Chinese  idea  influenced  the  Namban  group  of  artists 
for  three  centuries.  The  early  Namban  tsuba  are  rarely  signed,  but 
after  the  style  became  popular,  scores  were  made  at  Kyoto  and  Nagasaki 
which  have  the  signatures  of  mediocre  artists. 

On  account  of  a  certain  similarity  of  technique  and  quality  of  iron, 
the  Hizen  tsuba  are  often  classed  along  with  the  Namban  guards,  though 
their  predominant  decoration  is  of  such  individuality  as  to  warrant  a 
distinct  grouping.  It  was  in  the  late  eighteenth  century  that  Mitsuhiro 
of  Yagami  in  Hizen  began  making  sword-fittings  of  iron  chiselled  in 
openwork  with  a  design  of  a  hundred  monkeys.  He  was  followed  by 
a  son  of  the  same  name  and  by  Yoshitsugu,  a  Nagasaki  artist,  both  of 
whom  improved  upon  the  technique  of  the  founder  and  added  to  the 
family  repertoire  designs  of  a  hundred  horses,  a  hundred  rabbits,  and 
other  "hundreds."  The  tsuba  in  Plate  XIX,  Fig.  i,  is  unsigned,  circu- 
lar, and  filled  within  the  slender  rim  with  figures  of  monkeys  carved  in 
all  attitudes  distinctly  different  on  the  two  sides  of  the  tsuba.  The  seppa 
dai  is  chased  with  the  formal  wave  design  common  to  these  pieces.  A 
small  fuchi  in  this  collection  is  covered  entirely  with  monkeys   (too 

1  The  Dragon  in  Japan  and  China,  pp.  103-108. 


y6  Japanese  Sword-Mounts 

minute  for  reproduction)  whose  eyes  are  inlaid  in  gold.  Certain  Hizen 
tsuba  are  solid  placques  inlaid  in  silver  nunome  with  a  design  of  dragons 
or  birds  strongly  reflective  of  Chinese  influence. 

The  only  port  open  to  foreigners,  during  the  time  of  the  exclusive 
policy  of  the  Tokugawa  shoguns,  was  that  of  Nagasaki  in  Hizen,  where 
the  Dutch  were  allowed  to  land  a  limited  number  of  boats,  and  where 
imports  from  China  were  pouring  in,  constantly  refreshening  the  stream 
of  inspiration  from  which  the  Japanese  had  so  freely  partaken.  In  the 
late  seventeenth  or  early  eighteenth  century,  a  certain  custom's  official 
of  Nagasaki,  named  Jakushi  Kizayemon,  was  greatly  influenced  by  his 
association  with  the  people  and  objects  to  be  seen  in  this  port.  He  was 
at  first  a  painter,  but  is  said  to  have  learned  from  the  foreigners  the  art 
of  etching  metals  in  relief  by  means  of  acids,  whereupon  he  transferred 
his  attention  from  painting  to  working  in  metal.  He  soon  became  a 
noted  maker  of  tsuba  and  applied  to  the  iron  grounds  which  he  always 
used,  brilliant  designs  suggestive  of  the  Chinese  artists  who  had  been 
the  source  of  his  inspiration  as  a  painter.  These  decorations  are  com- 
binations of  relief  in  iron  covered  over  with  very  fine  nunome-zogan  in 
varying  shades  of  gold  and  silver.  Dragons  in  the  waves,  birds  flying 
through  clouds,  and  occasionally  figures  were  depicted  by  this  artist,  but 
it  was  in  the  pure  landscape  that  he  excelled  primarily,  introducing,  as 
he  did  through  his  tsuba,  the  detailed  stretches  of  mountain  scenery 
suggested  by  contemporary  paintings  from  the  continent. 

The  unsigned  tsuba  (Plate  XIX,  Figs.  2-3)  is  thoroughly  character- 
istic of  the  work  of  this  artist  and  his  followers,  and  from  the  excel- 
lence of  technique  is  judged  to  be  an  authentic  product  of  Jakushi  II, 
who  was  a  son  of  Jakushi  I,  and  whose  work  resembles  closely  that  of 
his  father.  It  is  of  mokko  form,  of  brown  iron,  and  covered  on  both 
sides  with  a  charming  landscape  in  pure  Chinese  style.  On  the  obverse 
in  relief  covered  over  with  delicate  nunome-zogan  of  three  shades  of 
gold,  rocky  promontories  tower  up  into  a  sky  flecked  with  golden  clouds 
beyond  which  a  full  silvery  moon  emerges.  Below,  rocks  of  lesser  height 
and  pine-clad,  overhang  a  lake  whereon  five  small  sailboats  and  a 
larger  junk  are  inlaid  in  relief  of  silver  and  gold.  Two  tiny  figures,  in 
relief  of  shakudo,  are  walking  out  on  a  bank  beneath  pavilions  nestled 
in  the  rocks.  The  scene  continues  on  the  reverse  side,  where  another 
small  figure  is  seen  crossing  a  bridge  over  the  shining  waves,  and  about 
to  enter  another  rocky  retreat. 

Jakushi  II,  also  known  as  Kizayemon,  was  even  more  expert  than 
his  father  in  this  work  of  delicate  inlay.    He  was  followed  by  Yeirakudo 


jiifERsmf  o*  mi**;  vuuki 


• 


gBietsnYCFSiii^^nAiiv 


«c  ^  .s*.**>mj*i*^*- 


S6TEN    OF   HlKONE  77 

of  Nagasaki  and  a  host  of  copyists  who  imitated  with  more  or  less  suc- 
cess the  style  of  the  two  masters. 

Another  artist,  who  at  first  chose  Chinese  subjects  as  motives  for  the 
decoration  of  his  sword-fittings,  was  Kitagawa  Soten  who  lived  in 
Hikone  in  the  province  of  Goshu,  which  is  the  Sino-Japanese  name  for 
Omi.  He  not  only  produced  solid  tsuba,  but  also  worked  in  marubori 
zogan,  carving  in  the  round  decorated  with  colored  inlay,  a  combination 
which  became  extremely  popular,  and  which  is  sometimes  termed  hikone 
bori  from  the  name  of  the  town  Hikone.  Unfortunately,  there  was 
such  a  demand  for  this  type  of  tsuba  that  a  wholesale  production  of 
signed  and  unsigned  copies  of  tawdry  appearance  took  place  at  Aizu  in 
the  nineteenth  century;  and  many  of  these  examples  have  crossed  the 
waters  and  become  the  representatives  of  this  school  in  several  collec- 
tions, thereby  falsely  prejudicing  a  number  of  people  against  all  work 
of  this  name.  , 

The  genuine  products  of  Soten  I  and  his  son  Soten  II,  when  care- 
fully studied,  evoke  admiration  and  interest  both  on  account  of  their 
technique  and  the  subjects  illustrated.  The  foundation  metal  is  usually 
iron,  though  there  is  an  excellent  shakudo  tsuba  in  this  collection.  At 
first  Chinese  subjects  seem  to  have  engrossed  Soten  I,  but  later  incidents 
from  Japanese  history  and  folk-lore  were  realistically  portrayed  bringing 
out  episodes  of  intense  interest.  The  costumes  and  armor  on  the  figures 
are  often  inlaid  with  great  care  and  effectiveness,  the  faces  are  generally 
in  relief  of  copper  or  silver,  while  the  landscape  is  encrusted  with  gold 
nunome-zogan. 

Soten  I,  also  known  as  Shuten,  lived  in  the  early  part  of  the  seven- 
teenth century.  He  probably  used  the  name  Soheishi  and  the  title 
Niudo,  which  originally  indicated  retirement  from  worldly  affairs  to  the 
calm  of  Buddhistic  contemplation.1  Both  of  these  names  were  adopted 
by  Soten  II,  who  is  said  to  have  inscribed  his  name  in  a  larger  and  bolder 
manner  than  his  father.  The  school  of  Hikone  was  carried  on  by  certain 
members  of  the  Nomura  family,  chief  among  whom  was  Kanenori 
(early  eighteenth  century),  a  pupil  of  Soten  II,  who  closely  followed  his 
master's  style.  , 

Two  incidents  in  Japanese  history  are  vividly  portrayed  on  the  tsuba 
(Plate  XX,  Figs.  1-2),  both  of  which  are  of  iron.  The  first  is  signed: 
"Soten  who  lived  in  Hikone  in  Goshu."  The  scene  depicted  is  that 
known  as  Fuji  no-makigari  ("Hunting  at  the  base  of  Fuji"),  a  pastime 

*H.  Joly,  Inscriptions  on  Japanese  Sword  Fittings  (Transactions  Japan 
Soc,  Vol.  XV,  p.  88). 


78  Japanese  Sword-Mounts 

of  great  popularity  under  the  Kamakura  shoguns.  Above,  at  the  right, 
may  be  seen  Yoritomo  (1147-29),  the  founder  of  the  shogunate,  riding 
along  on  his  horse  led  by  two  grooms;  all  are  fully  armored.  A  third 
attendant  follows  him,  bearing  the  Minamoto  field  signal  (umajirushi), 
a  tuft  of  long  streamers  surmounted  by  the  family  crest,  which  is 
a  formalized  combination  of  bamboo  leaves  and  three  flowers  of  the 
gentian  (Gentiana  scabra,  rindo  in  Japanese).  An  armored  companion 
clutching  a  long  halberd  with  blade  of  silver,  stands  barring  the  path  and 
ready  to  attack  a  large  wild  boar  which  a  hunter  is  stabbing  in  the  back. 
The  precipitous  path  is  broken  by  gnarled  pines,  bamboo  shoots,  gourd 
vines,  and  a  rushing  stream,  all  touched  with  nunome-zogan  in  different 
shades  of  gold.  Portions  of  a  camp  curtain  suggesting  an  enclosed  sec- 
tion of  the  country  may  be  seen  above  and  below  chiselled  from  the  iron 
and  bearing  reliefs  of  silver  and  gold.  On  the  reverse  side  of  the  tsuba, 
two  other  armored  hunters  stand  beneath  a  waterfall,  awaiting  the  at- 
tack; one  is  blowing  upon  a  conch-trumpet. 

Dramatic  incidents  which  occurred  at  the  important  battle  of  Dan- 
no-Ura  (a.d.  1185),  the  decisive  victory  of  the  Minamoto  over  the  Taira, 
are  told  on  both  of  the  sculptured  faces  of  the  other  tsuba  (Plate  XX, 
Figs.  2-3)  which  is  signed :  Niudo  Soten  Sei  Soheishi  Hikone  jiu 
Goshu  ("Niudo  Soten  Sdheshi  made  [this],  living  in  Hikone  of 
Goshu")  :  On  the  obverse,  at  the  top,  is  the  imperial  phcenix-headed 
boat  of  the  empress  dowager  Ni-i  no  ama,  who  stands  holding  the  seven- 
year  old  child-emperor  Antoku.  Below,  she  sees  her  enemy  Minamoto 
Yoshitsune  (the  young  brother  of  Yoritomo),  who  has  leaped  over  eight 
boats,  and  who  is  escaping  from  Noritsune,  the  Taira  warrior.  This 
incident  is  known  as  the  Hasso  tobi  ("Eight  boat  jump").  Noristune, 
who  endeavored  to  capture  Yoshitsune,  was  impeded  by  two  wrestlers. 
Finally,  in  despair,  he  jumped  into  the  sea  and  was  drowned.  His  feet 
are  seen  protruding  from  the  waves  toward  which  Yoshitsune  is  turning. 
The  dowager  empress,  on  seeing  the  battle  lost,  prepares  to  jump  into 
the  waves  with  the  young  emperor.1  On  the  reverse  side,  four  boats 
are  tossing  about  in  the  rough  and  foam-flecked  waves.  An  armored 
knight  may  be  seen  in  each  of  the  boats  which  are  effectively  inlaid  in 
gold  nunome.  The  standards  of  the  Minamoto  and  the  Taira  are  in 
evidence,  as  is  also  a  long  narrow  banner  of  the  form  fukinagashi.  One 
is  impressed  by  the  fact  that  these  artists  undoubtedly  deserve  a  place 
among  the  skilled  workers  in  metal,  and  that  they  have  also  left  some 
important  historical  documents  in  their  carefully  conceived  designs. 

1For  continuation  of  Antoku's  life  under  the  sea,  see  M.  De  Visser,  The 
Dragon  in  China  and  Japan,  p.  197. 


IX.    HIGO,  AKASAKA  AND  AKAO  TSUBA 
KINAI  OF  ECHIZEN 

Although  during  the  seventeenth  and  eighteenth  centuries,  alloys  had 
come  into  general  use,  and  though  the  luxurious  fashions  of  the  Toku- 
gawa  court  had  called  forth  lavish  decoration  even  on  the  fittings  for  the 
sword,  there  were  certain  groups  of  artists  who  continued  to  work 
almost  entirely  in  iron,  disdaining  the  softer  metals  of  varying  shades. 
Some  of  the  sword-guards  produced  by  these  men  are  unusually  beau- 
tiful in  the  purity  of  their  designs,  being  for  the  most  part  executed  in 
positive  or  negative  silhouette  carved  with  unerring  accuracy  and  in 
many  cases  finished  with  fine  lines  of  surface  engraving. 

As  a  group,  the  members  of  the  schools  in  the  province  of  Higo  were 
perhaps  the  most  prolific,  having  left  many  striking  examples  of  this 
type  of  iron  work.  The  fact  that  this  province  is  far  removed  from 
the  shogun's  capital  may  account  for  a  certain  persistency  in  the  style  of 
these  pieces,  as  must  also  the  circumstance  that  they  are  said  to  have 
been  made  primarily  for  one  family,  that  of  the  powerful  Hosokawa. 
For  three  centuries,  this  family  ruled  the  province  of  Higo  as  daimyo 
from  the  time  of  Prince  Hosokawa  Sansai  Tadaoki  (i  564-1645),  who 
in  his  leisure  moments  is  reported  to  have  made  sword-fittings.1  Besides 
independent  groups  of  artists,  there  were  five  schools  of  metal  workers  in 
Higo,  each  of  which  developed  distinguishing  characteristics.  Hirata 
Hikozo  and  Nishigaki  Kanshiro  were  the  founders  of  two  schools,  and 
themselves  made  sword-fittings  for  the  Prince  Tadaoki.  Each  was 
followed  by  many  pupils  and  descendants  who  for  several  generations 
carried  on  their  style  of  chiselling  designs  in  negative  silhouette.  Two 
circular  tsuba  on  Plate  XXI  admirably  illustrate  the  effective  use  these 
artists  made  of  cutting  away  the  iron  in  ornamental  designs,  such  as  the 
cherry-blossom  and  the  spray  of  wistaria  (Fig.  1),  and  the  cherry  and 
chrysanthemum  (Fig.  2).  Both  of  these  iron  guards  are  characteristic 
of  the  work  of  the  Hirata  family,  who  preferred  the  negative  silhouettes 
in  contrast  to  the  positive  silhouettes  of  other  Higo  artists.  One  half  of 
the  tsuba  reproduced  in  Fig.  2  is  carved  to  represent  the  chrysanthemum, 
while  the  other  half  is  solid  and  chiselled  with  a  surface  decoration  of 
radiating  lines  common  to  Higo  guards  and  known  by  the  name  Amida 
yasurime  or  tagane   ("Amida  filing  or  chiselling"),  so  called  because 

1 G.  Jacoby,  Die  Schwertzieraten  der  Provinz  Higo,  pp.  6-7. 

79 


80  Japanese  Sword-Mounts 

suggestive  of  the  rays  of  light  emanating  from  the  halo  of  Amida 
(Amitabha),  the  Buddha  of  Endless  Light.  Straight  lines  representing 
rain  are  also  to  be  seen  chiselled  as  a  ground  on  these  particular  guards. 

The  followers  of  Nishigaki  Kanshiro  not  only  made  tsuba  carved  in 
openwork,  somewhat  similar  to  the  preceding  examples,  but  they  also 
left  solid  sword-guards  ornamented  with  designs  in  low  relief  and  cov- 
ered with  nunome-zogan.  Of  such  a  type  is  Fig.  3  in  Plate  XXI, 
whereon  the  rain  dragon  and  two  rolling  clouds  are  carved  in  relief  and 
tinged  with  silver  inlay.  On  the  reverse  of  this  guard  of  irregular  mokko 
form  there  are  incised,  within  a  ring,  five  Chinese  characters  of  antique 
style.  A  tsuba  whose  obverse  side  is  very  similar  to  this  one  is  re- 
produced in  the  book,  referred  to  above,  by  G.  Jacoby  (p.  34),  which  is 
an  elaboration  of  the  Japanese  work  Higo  Kinkoroku  of  S.  Nagaya. 
Therein  the  different  workers  are  listed,  their  signatures  given,  and 
their  work  commented  upon  in  detail. 

We  learn  from  the  illustrations  reproducing  the  work  of  the  Shimizu 
family,  the  third  Higo  school,  that  this  particular  group  specialized  in 
form  there  are  incised,  within  a  ring,  five  Chinese  characters  of  antique 
monkey,  or  standing  on  a  branch  looking  with  searching  eye  for  prey. 
The  octopus  placed  at  the  top  of  the  tsuba  with  its  long  tentacles  extend- 
ing along  the  sides  is  another  favorite  motive  for  these  artists,  most  of 
whom  used  the  name  Jingo  in  conjunction  with  their  other  names  in 
signing  their  work,  thereby  giving  the  appellation  "Jingo  tsuba"  to  much 
of  the  iron  work  with  brass  reliefs.  , 

The  Kamiyoshi  family,  who  were  the  early  members  of  the  fourth 
group,  had  several  representatives  who  produced  fine  tsuba,  the  last 
of  fame  being  Masayasu  Rakuju  (nineteenth  century),  who  continued 
the  family  custom  of  adorning  the  iron,  wheref rom  he  cut  designs  both  in 
negative  and  positive  silhouette,  with  thread-like  spirals  or  diamond 
shapes  in  relief  of  gold.  The  Hosokawa  crest  which  consists  of  one 
large  circle  surrounded  by  eight  small  ones  occasionally  appears  in 
miniature  inlaid  in  gold  several  times  on  a  specimen,  thus  adding  a 
brilliancy  to  the  dark  iron  which  makes  a  very  rich  effect. 

Most  famous  of  the  five  Higo  schools  is  that  of  the  Kasuga  masters 
founded  by  Hayashi  Matashichi  (1608-91),  whose  products  for  the 
most  part  are  of  deep  black  iron,  though  some  are  known  which  are 
of  copper,  shibuichi,  and  shakudo.  He  inlaid  pure  gold  wire  on  some 
of  his  tsuba,  thereby  producing  brilliant  effects.  The  crane  with  spread- 
ing wings  and  head  turned  to  the  side  has  been  the  basis  for  some  of 
the  most  delicately  chiselled  tsuba  made  by  these  artists.     The  whole 


WIBBtt&LYM*  imW 


**•■  -^  ***►.< 


fawSnroFai»tBnA«» 


Kasuga  of  Higo  8i 

design  is  cut  in  positive  silhouette,  the  feathers  oftentimes  being  out- 
lined by  spans  of  iron  less  than  one  millimeter  in  width.  With  the  same 
power  and  grace  the  Kasuga  masters  chiselled  a  spray  of  the  plum 
(Plate  XXII,  Fig.  i),  curving  the  body  of  the  branch  so  as  to  form  an 
irregular  rim  within  which  the  twigs  and  blossoms  are  so  placed  as  to 
fill  the  circle  with  a  protective  web  of  beautiful  design.  Surface  carving 
accentuates  the  outline  of  the  buds  and  delicately  suggests  the  stamens 
of  the  plum-blossoms. 

The  same  technique  is  displayed  on  the  following  specimen  (Plate 
XXII,  Fig.  2),  which  is  likewise  a  characteristic  Kasuga  tsuba.  Two 
diagonal  lines, — one  of  considerable  breadth,  the  other  very  narrow, — 
boldly  cross  the  lower  portion  of  the  guard,  while  above  in  realistic 
carving  are  leaves  and  buds  of  the  kiri  {Paulownia  im  per  talis) ,  that 
plant  which  is  the  foundation  of  several  crest  designs,  one  of  which 
appears  in  combination  with  other  family  insignia  in  Fig.  3,  Plate  XXII. 

The  kiri  mon  is  one  of  the  two  imperial  crests,  the  other  being  the 
kiku  ("chrysanthemum").  The  kiri  is  represented  either  with  five  and 
seven  blossoms  {go-shichi  no  kiri),  which  is  the  imperial  form,  or  with 
five  and  three  blossoms,  generally  the  form  used  by  other  families  of 
Japan.  "The  imperial  kiri  mon  seems  to  have  been  of  very  ancient  use, 
and  was  conferred  as  a  subsidiary  mon  upon  the  great  Minamoto  war- 
rior Yoshiiye  (see  Plate  LI  I,  Fig.  1),  perhaps  better  known  by  his 
youthful  name  of  Hachimantaro.  Yoshiiye  died  in  1108,  but  the  badge 
was  transmitted  as  kayemon  ('subsidiary  badge')  to  several  great  mili- 
tary families  descended  from  him,  who  flourished  during  the  five  suc- 
ceeding centuries.  These  were  the  Hatakeyama,  the  Hosokawa,  the 
Imagawa,  the  Nitta,  the  Shiba,  and  the  Yamana,  the  last-named  bearing 
it  as  a  jomon  ('fixed  badge').  Moreover,  seventeen  daimyo  families  of 
Tokugawa  times  bore  the  badge  as  kayemon,  and  one,  the  So  of  Tsushi- 
ma, as  jomon;  besides  four  kuge  families,  and  lastly  the  great  Hide- 
yoshi  himself,  who  bore  both  imperial  mon,  Paulownia,  and  chrysanthe- 
mum, and  even  presented  surcoats  bearing  them  to  favored  vassals.  This 
should  suffice  to  demonstrate  that  the  presence  of  the  imperial  badge  on 
any  work  of  art  in  no  wise  implies  any  connection  with  the  august  line 
of  the  Son  of  Heaven."1 

The  three  other  crests  on  this  tsuba  are  the  mitsu-tomoye  adopted  by 
Arima,  a  daimyo  of  Shimozuke  Province ;  the  hanabishi,  the  crest  of  the 
samurai  family  Torio;  and  the  omodaka  {Alisima  plantago)  in  the  form 

1  A.  Koop,  Construction  and  Blazonry  of  Mon  (Transactions  Japan  Soc, 
Vol.  IX,  p.  296). 


82  Japanese  Sword-Mounts 

used  by  Mizuno,  a  daimyo  of  the  province  of  Kazusa.1  The  maker  of 
this  tsuba  has  chiselled  the  crests  in  positive  silhouette  with  kebori  lines 
to  bring  out  details,  and  placed  them  equidistant  from  one  another, 
dividing  the  spaces  by  lines  of  flying  birds. 

,  This  unsigned  tsuba  is  quite  as  characteristic  of  the  school  known  as 
the  Akasaka,  as  it  is  of  the  Kasuga,  but  it  is  thought  on  account  of  the 
kiri  crest  which  was  used  by  the  Hosokawa  family  of  Higo  that  it  is 
more  likely  to  have  been  produced  in  that  province.  Akasaka  tsuba  are 
likewise  of  iron  and  for  the  most  part  triumphs  of  chiselling  in  open- 
work generally  in  the  positive  silhouette  style.  Some  of  the  most  appeal- 
ing ones  are  composed  of  inscriptions  written  in  cursive.2  This  school 
is  said  to  have  originated  in  the  shop  of  a  dealer,  named  Karigane  Hiko- 
bei,  who  lived  in  the  seventeenth  century,  at  first  in  Kyoto.  Under  his 
strict  surveillance  Tadamasa  I,  a  skilled  metal  worker,  produced  tsuba 
which  were  suggestive  of  the  Heianjo  sukashi  guards.  Hikobei,  being  a 
severe  critic  and  himself  a  designer,  is  reported  to  have  destroyed  all 
pieces  made  in  his  studio  which  did  not  come  up  to  his  standard  of 
excellence,  thus  maintaining  a  high  quality,  which  has  given  these  tsuba 
an  enviable  reputation.  The  name  Akasaka  comes  from  a  district  in  Yedo 
whither  Hikobei  moved  when  the  shogun's  capital  became  the  gathering 
place  for  many  artists.  There  the  dealer  founded  a  distinct  school 
among  whose  members  were  Tadamasa  I,  II,  and  Masatora  as  well  as 
five  men,  by  the  name  of  Tadatoki.  The  first  three  of  these  Akasaka 
masters  did  not  sign  their  tsuba  and  worked  in  the  Heianjo  style.  From 
1  akatoki  I  on,  the  artists  of  this  family  were  strongly  influenced  by  the 
Kasuga  and  Nishigaki  schools  of  Higo,  using  many  of  the  same  designs 
and  finishing  their  work  with  kebori.  They  usually  cut  away  the  maxi- 
mum amount  of  iron,  leaving  in  many  cases  extremely  narrow  spans  of 
the  metal  to  outline  the  motives. 

The  Sunagawa  school  was  an  offshoot  of  the  Akasaka,  having  been 
founded  by  Masatora  in  the  eighteenth  century.  While  the  members  of 
this  group  left  many  pieces  in  perforated  designs  which  are  pleasing,  on 
the  whole,  Sunagawa  tsuba  do  not  possess  the  grace  and  delicacy  of  the 
parent  school.  The  same  may  be  said  with  some  reservation  of  the 
Akao  school,  who  were  greatly  influenced  by  the  Akasaka  family,  and 
who  produced  beautiful  tsuba,  usually  of  conventionalized  design.  This 
school  originated  in  Echizen  in  the  early  eighteenth  century,  and  certain 

*H.  Strohl,  Japanisches  Wappenbuch,  pp.  102,  132,  149. 
*H.   Joly,    Inscriptions   on   Japanese    Sword    Fittngs    (Transactions   Japan 
Soc,  Vol.  XV,  p.  96). 


Satsuma  Tsuba.     Kinai  of  Echizen  83 

members  remained  in  that  province,  while  others  migrated  to  Yedo.  The 
small  iron  tsuba  (Plate  XXIII,  Fig.  1),  formed  by  the  crossing  of  the 
outspread  wings  of  three  geese,  is  characteristic  of  the  more  formalized 
nature  motives  which  were  preferred  by  the  Akao  group.  Yoshitsugu, 
a  samurai  to  the  daimyo  of  Echizen,  was  the  first  renowned  member  of 
this  family.    He  was  followed  by  a  son  of  the  same  name. 

The  bamboo,  the  gourd,  and  the  bean  are  the  designs  most  frequently 
met  with  in  the  tsuba  which  were  made  by  an  atelier  in  Satsuma  Prov- 
ince. Naoka  of  the  Oda  family  in  the  early  eighteenth  century 
produced  many  guards  which  resemble  closely  the  one  in  Plate  XXIII, 
Fig.  2,  which  is  unsigned.  The  artist  has  carved  in  the  round  a 
gourd  with  twisting  stem,  tendrils,  and  leaves,  the  veining  of  which  he 
has  brought  out  by  finely  cut,  low  relief  and  kebori.  Certain  of  these 
guards,  particularly  those  bearing  the  signature  of  Fujiwara  Naoka, 
are  fashioned  to  represent  bamboo  sprays  with  young  leaves.  One  of 
particular  beauty  is  that  in  the  Oeder  collection.1  The  Satsuma  school 
excelled  in  its  fine  treatment  and  tempering  of  the  iron,  and  almost 
always  based  its  designs  upon  the  three  plants  mentioned  above. 

In  the  province  of  Echizen,  the  most  famous  school  of  tsuba  makers 
is  that  of  the  Kinai,  so  called  from  the  name  of  five  artists,  who  made 
sword-guards  of  iron  chiselled  in  openwork  designs  of  plants,  dragons, 
shells,  masks,  and  cranes.  These  tsuba  were  widely  imitated,  many  of 
the  copies  being  inlaid  in  gold,  a  method  of  decoration  rarely  to  be  seen 
in  the  true  work  of  the  masters. 

The  first  Kinai  of  the  Ishikawa  family  died  in  1680.  F.  Brinkley2 
relates  having  seen  his  tomb,  as  well  as  that  of  the  second  Kinai  which 
is  dated  1699.  H.  Joly  informs  us  that  "the  first  and  second  Kinai 
made  chiefly  circular  and  somewhat  large  guards,  the  third  affected 
dragon  designs,  and  his  followers  continued  the  tradition,  though  after 
the  fifth,  all  kinds  of  designs  prevail."3  The  unusual  finish  on  some 
Kinai  guards  is  due  to  a  coating  of  magnetic  iron  oxide,  a  process  which 
the  copyists  also  employed.  This  treatment  produced  a  black  patina  of 
considerable  brilliancy.  Certain  Kinai  tsuba  are  signed  "Ken jo,"  which 
means  "made  for  presentation."  These  are  thought  by  M.  de  Tressan 
to  be  the  work  of  Kinai  II,  called  Takahashi.  Working  in  the  second 
half  of  the  seventeenth  century,  he  must  have  produced  them  for  the 
daimyo,  all  of  whom  were  required  to  go  to  the  shogun's  capital  each  year 

*P.  Vautier,  Japanische  Stichblatter  und  Schwertzieraten,  Sammlung  G. 
Oeder,  p.  75,  No.  627. 

"F.  Brinkley,  Japan  and  China,  Vol.  VII,  p.  374. 

*H.  Joly  and  K.  Tomita,  Japanese  Art  and  Handicraft,  p.  136. 


84  Japanese  Sword-Mounts 

in  compliance  with  the  edict  announcing  this  duty,  and  published  by 
Tokugawa  Iyemitsu  in  1642.1  It  was  customary  on  these  occasions  to  pre- 
sent the  shogun  with  gifts.  In  the  attribution  of  these  tsuba  to  Kinai  II, 
F.  Brinkley  agrees  with  M.  de  Tressan,  adding  that  this  artist  also 
produced  for  the  feudal  chief  of  Echizen  many  other  objects,  such  as 
chojiburo  and  incense  holders  with  perforated  patterns  of  lace-like  fine- 
ness. For  exceptional  sukashibori  work  in  iron  the  Kinai  are  unsur- 
passed by  any  of  the  other  seventeenth-century  artists.  Three  tsuba 
signed:  Kinai  saku  Echizen  ju  ("made  by  Kinai  living  in  Echizen") 
have  been  chosen  from  several  in  this  collection,  similarly  signed,  in  the 
belief  that  they  are  genuine  examples  of  one  of  the  five  masters.  The 
one  in  Plate  XXIII,  Fig.  3,  is  of  black  iron,  resembling  the  work  of 
Kinai  I,  who  specialized  in  large  circular  guards  similar  to  this  one. 
The  design  consists  of  two  kiri  crests  placed  between  scroll-like  vines 
and  leaves  chiselled  a  jour  within  a  narrow  rim.  This  example  was  at 
one  time  in  the  collection  of  M.  Gillot  of  Paris. 

The  design  of  the  smaller  tsuba  (Plate  XXIV,  Fig.  1),  which  is  also 
of  iron  with  black  patina,  must  have  been  one  which  the  Kinai  school 
distinctly  favored,  since  four  guards  made  of  masks  strongly  similar  to 
this  one  are  known  to  the  writer.  There  is  a  sparing  use  of  gold  on  this 
particular  guard  effectively  employed  to  inlay  the  pupils  of  the  eyes. 
This  fact  arouses  a  doubt  as  to  whether  it  is  a  work  of  one  of  the 
Kinai  masters ;  however,  in  studying  the  excellent  chiselling  and  sensing 
the  realistic  reproduction  of  the  No  masks  themselves,  one  instinctively 
feels  that  behind  the  tools  was  the  hand  of  a  master  craftsman.  The 
reverse  side  is  quite  as  interesting  as  the  obverse.  The  backs  of  the 
masks  are  cleverly  carved  and  the  tying  cords  issuing  from  the  sculp- 
tured ears  fall  in  studied  carelessness  and  knit  the  separate  parts  of  the 
design  into  a  perfect  unit.  The  masks  represent  characters  often  im- 
personated in  the  No  drama,  and  reading  from  the  top  around  by  the 
right  side  are:  Sumiyoshi  Otoko  ("Sumiyoshi,  a  young  man"),  Hannya 
("a  horned  female  demon"),  Chorei  aku  ken  ("a  long-lived,  dumb, 
seeing  ghost"),  Jisungami  ("ten  foot  kami"),  and  Shu  be  akui  ("eagle- 
nosed,  wicked  officer").2 

The  third  Kinai  tsuba  (Plate  XXIV,  Fig.  2)  is  a  carving  of  five 
flying  cranes,  masterfully  distributed  so  as  to  make  on  both  sides  of  the 
guard  a  composition  full  of  vitality  and  grace.  The  feathers  on  wings, 
backs,  breasts,  and  necks  are  chiselled  in  kebori  in  differing  strokes  with 

^f.i-san,  Notes  sur  l'art  japonaise,  p.  203. 

'These  identifications  are  in  accordance  with  the  book  on  No  drama  by  M. 
Shojiro,  Nogaku  Daijiten  Fuzu. 


Wmmvrix&^imw 


Ti.       „      ,,■?* 


FIELD  MUSEUM  OF  NATURAL  HISTORY. 


ANTHROPOLOGY,  VOL.   XVI,   PL.  XXIV. 


TSUBA  BY  KlNAI  OF  ECHIZEN  (p.  84). 


Satsuma  Tsuba.     Kinai  of  Echizen  85 

exceeding  care  and  skill,  reproducing  the  soft  feather  texture  to  a  re- 
markable degree.  The  overlapping  of  the  wings  on  the  edge  and  the 
skillful  curving  of  the  long  necks  which  outline  the  riohitsu  are  evidence 
of  that  art  of  design  which  seems  to  be  a  prevailing  gift  of  the 
Japanese  artist. 


X.    THE  NARA  AND  HAMANO  SCHOOLS 
IWAMA  MASAYOSHI  AND  HIS  FOLLOWERS 

With  the  warring  epochs  definitely  closed  under  the  early  Tokugawa 
shoguns  the  end  of  the  seventeenth  and  eighteenth  centuries  witnessed 
the  culmination  of  the  indulgent  and  luxurious  life  of  the  members  of 
the  military  class.  Tales  are  told  of  daimyo  who,  having  lost  much  of 
their  political  power,  sought  satisfaction  in  the  fields  of  art  and  poetry, 
and  who,  on  account  of  their  leisure  worshipped  richness  and  adornment 
to  the  extent  of  painting  themselves  after  the  fashion  of  women  and 
matching  their  decorated  swords  with  the  magnificent  costumes  which 
were  commonly  worn  in  their  court  ceremonies.  Merchants  likewise 
became  more  prosperous,  and  many  of  them  took  to  wearing  swords 
along  with  their  writing  outfits  (yatate)  thrust  through  their  belts.  Due 
to  these  developments,  the  metal-workers  outvied  one  another  to  produce 
sword-fittings  of  extreme  beauty  and  elegance,  and  likewise,  in  order 
to  satisfy  the  demands  of  the  lower  classes,  artisans,  copying  the  artists, 
turned  out  replicas  and  shiiremono  in  great  number.  Though  the  art  of 
incrustation  on  gold  had  been  mastered  by  many  of  the  artists,  certain 
ones,  particularly  those  of  the  Gotd  school,  and  some  of  the  Nara  group, 
continued  to  use  pure  gold  in  their  reliefs.  These  luxurious  excesses 
were  indulged  in  lavishly  until  1830  when  due  to  the  low  ebb  of  the  state 
finances,  the  shogun's  representative  in  Kyoto,  Mizuno  Tadakuni  Echi- 
zen  no  kami,  forbade  the  further  use  of  any  more  ornaments  of  solid 
gold.  To  elude  this  law,  those  who  wished  the  pure  gold  are  known  to 
have  had  the  ornaments  covered  with  black  lacquer.1  From  1830  to 
1840  there  occurred  a  half-hearted  return  to  the  old  simplicity  which 
later  on  was  followed  by  an  outburst  of  elaborate  decoration.2 

It  was  during  the  century  preceding  1830,  before  the  decadence  had 
set  in,  that  the  finest  work  and  most  artistic  tsuba  and  other  fittings 
of  alloys  were  made  by  members  of  the  famous  Nara  school. 

This  is  one  of  the  largest  and  most  widely  known  groups  of  metal- 
workers, whose  work  is  characterized  by  a  large  variety  of  subjects  for 
decoration,  as  well  as  the  employment  of  many  different  metals.  Taking 
their  inspiration  direct  from  nature,  the  early  artists  worked  in  iron 

1  A.  Mosl£,  The  Ornaments  of  the  Goto  Shirobei  Family  {Transactions 
Japan  Soc,  Vol.  VIII,  p.  193). 

aH.  Joly,  Japanese  Sword  Fittings  in  the  Naunton  Collection,  p.  xxiv. 

86 


The  Nara  School  87 

with  reliefs  of  gold  or  silver  depicting  birds  and  flowers  with  striking 
realism  and  freedom.  Historical  and  legendary  subjects  also  inspired 
them  occasionally,  for  they  were  bold  in  borrowing  from  Chinese  and 
Japanese  folk-lore  pictorial  compositions  hitherto  unused  on  sword- 
fittings.  The  alloys  carefully  treated  became  the  delight  of  the  later 
masters  of  the  school  who  sculptured  figures  with  exceeding  skill. 

Founded  by  a  seceder  from  the  Goto,  by  name  Toshiteru  of  Yedo, 
in  the  early  seventeenth  century,  the  history  of  the  Nara  school  is  not 
known  in  detail  in  its  early  years.  Toshiteru  was  followed  by  Toshi- 
mune,  who  may  have  been  his  son.  Toshiharu,  a  third  Nara  master, 
who  used  the  names  Yechizen  and  Soyu,  was  the  son  of  Toshimune.  He 
and  Toshihisa  and  Yasuchika  are  sometimes  called  the  Nara  Sambuku 
tsui:  "three  pictures  of  the  Nara  family."1  Toshinaga,  son  of  Toshi- 
haru and  the  fourth  Nara  master  lived  at  the  end  of  the  seventeenth 
century  and  also  used  the  name  Chikan.  He  was  followed  by  two  other 
artists  of  the  same  name,  who,  however,  signed  it  in  different  characters. 
Toshinaga  Zenzo  was  a  pupil  of  Toshinaga  Chikan  and  worked  in  Yedo 
in  the  early  eighteenth  century. 

The  first  of  the  three  great  masters  of  this  school  was  Toshinaga, 
who  is  generally  known  as  Toshinaga  I  and  also  as  Tahei.  He  was  a 
pupil  of  Toshiharu,  and  is  noted  for  his  skill  in  the  modelling  of  figures. 
He  was  born  in  1667  and  lived  to  be  seventy  years  of  age.  His  son 
Toshinaga  II  signed  his  name  identically  with  his  father  (see  Plate  LXI, 
Fig.  I  for  kakihan).  His  work,  while  good,  has  not  the  power  of  the 
former  master. 

Next  to  Toshinaga  I,  in  fame,  stands  Sugiura  Joi,  who  was  born  in 
1700  and  died  in  1761.  He  worked  in  Yedo,  signing  his  work  Issando, 
Nagaharu  or  Tashichi,  and  often  used  the  seal  characters  for  his  signa- 
ture, as  is  the  case  on  two  examples  in  this  collection  (Plate  LXI,Fig.  2). 
Though  a  pupil  of  Toshinaga  Zinzo,  he  has  marked  characteristics, 
which  easily  differentiate  his  work  from  the  other  Nara  artists.  Care- 
fully treating  his  surfaces  of  copper,  brass,  shakudo,  or  shibuichi,  he 
usually  modelled  his  figures  in  intaglio  relievato,  a  low  sunken  relief, 
which  gives  the  effect  of  the  figure  rising  out  of  the  metal.  He  has 
been  greatly  imitated,  as  have  most  of  the  Nara  masters.  A  subject 
which  he  rendered  many  times  is  one  of  the  Shichifukujin  or  seven 
gods  of  good  luck,  Hotei,  the  genius  of  contentment  and  the  special 
friend  of  children.  This  household  deity  was  adopted  from  China, 
where  he  is  known  as  the  "cloth-bag  monk"  (Pu-tai  Ho-shang).     He 

'F.  Brinkley,  Japan  and  China,  Vol.  VII,  p.  276. 


88  Japanese  Sword-Mounts 

is  also,  though  wrongly,  identified  by  the  Chinese  with  Mi-lo  Fu 
(Maitreya),  the  coming  Buddha,  and  his  image  is  often  to  be  seen 
set  up  as  guardian  of  the  Buddhist  temples.  On  the  copper  tsuba 
(Plate  XXV,  Fig.  i)  with  ishime  surface,  his  smiling  face  appears  rest- 
ing on  his  crossed  arms,  as  he  leans  over  his  huge  sack  from  beneath 
which  crawls  a  child  holding  a  fan.  Though  the  whole  of  the  sculpture 
is  recessed,  and  the  relief  is  low,  the  modelling  is  of  so  excellent  a 
quality  that  the  impression  is  one  of  high  rounded  relief.  Medallions 
of  various  designs  are  inlaid  in  gold  hirazogan  on  the  bag,  and  the  name 
Joi  in  seal  characters  is  inlaid  in  the  same  manner  on  the  reverse  side 
of  the  tsuba. 

A  sword-guard  of  sentoku,  also  the  work  of  this  master,  is  signed 
with  his  adopted  name  "Nagaharu,"  and  may  be  studied  from  Fig.  2  on 
Plate  XXV.  At  the  right  in  intaglio  relievato  is  a  Mongol  riding  a 
small  galloping  horse  and  turning  to  look  above  into  a  pine-tree  from 
which  depend  long,  parasitic  vines.  He  has  released  an  arrow  from  his 
bow  which  he  still  holds  aloft,  and  which  is  of  the  type  of  the  composite 
bow  used  by  the  Mongol  and  Turkish  tribes.  On  the  reverse,  executed 
in  the  same  technique,  is  a  surprised  and  delighted  attendant  moving  for- 
ward with  outstretched  hands  to  pick  up  a  bird  which  has  been  wounded 
by  the  arrow.  This  subject  may  have  been  copied  from  a  Chinese 
painting.  The  tree  is  drawn  in  the  style  of  the  Sesshu  school  which 
was  thoroughly  imbued  with  the  Chinese  spirit  and  whose  pictures,  as 
well  as  those  of  the  contemporary  schools,  were  constant  sources  of 
inspiration  to  the  metal  craftsman.  Joi  has  masterfully  reproduced  in 
these  branches  and  vines,  the  strokes  of  the  pliant,  fully  inked  brush 
of  the  painter,  by  sculpturing  this  part  of  his  decoration  in  what  is 
called  katakiribori.  By  this  method  of  chiselling  the  artist  aims  to 
convert  his  burin  into  the  brush  of  the  painter,  and  produce  by  one 
effort  of  cutting  strokes  of  varying  strength  and  directness  which  cor- 
respond in  significant  depth  and  lightness  to  the  modulated  strokes  of 
the  painter's  brush. 

Jowa,  a  nephew  and  pupil  of  Joi,  was  an  artist  of  considerable  ability, 
who  copied  to  a  certain  degree  his  master's  style,  though  he  produced 
several  fittings  which  have  a  characteristic  individuality.  Using  a  modi- 
fied intaglio  relievato,  he  has  sculptured  an  illustration  (Plate  XXV, 
Fig-  3)  °f  tne  popular  legend  of  Tadamori,  the  twelfth-century  hero, 
who  was  a  faithful  supporter  of  the  emperor  Toba.  It  is  related  that 
one  rainy  night  he  with  the  emperor  perceived  what  was  reported  to  be  a 
monster  with  flaming  mouth  speeding  along  the  road  toward  the  temple 


gfliEisiTY  of  EJUOHi  imm) 


*-**  ^%*  j*^r» 


The  Nara  School  89 

Yasaka  no  Yashiro.  Tadamori  bravely  sprang  upon  the  creature  with 
bristling  mane,  only  to  discover  that  it  was  a  faithful  old  priest  who  was 
performing  his  duty  of  refilling  the  temple  lamps  with  oil.  Jowa  has 
inlaid  the  battered  straw  rain-hat  in  gold  nunome-zogan,  which  against 
the  night-like  dark  blue  shakudo  ground  of  the  tsuba  gives  to  the  old 
priest  the  effect  of  a  halo.  Tadamori  garbed  in  court-costume  clutches 
the  oil  pot  and  wears  upon  his  face  (in  low  relief  of  shibuichi)  the  ex- 
pression of  grim  determination  which  we  are  told  soon  turned  to  apol- 
ogetic gentleness,  when  he  discovered  his  mistake.  On  the  reverse 
boldly  sculptured  stands  the  stone  lantern  beneath  driving,  slanting  rain- 
strokes  ;  a  sprig  of  bamboo  in  relief  of  gold  is  inlaid  at  the  base  of  the 
lantern. 

Of  equal  pictorial  quality  and  technical  excellence  is  the  tsuba  on 
Plate  XXVI,  Figs.  1  and  2,  by  Tsuneshige,  who  is  but  another  repre- 
sentative of  the  large  number  of  skilled  artists  of  the  Nara  school.  He 
worked  in  the  middle  of  the  eighteenth  century  and  occasionally  signed 
his  products  with  the  name  Masayoshi  (written  with  characters  dif- 
ferent from  two  other  Masayoshi  of  the  Nara  school,  listed  by  S. 
Hara).  Though  a  pupil  of  Shigetsugu,  he  evidently  owes  much  of  his 
art  to  Joi,  whose  method  of  low  relief  he  has  utilized  in  carving  this 
tsuba  of  shibuichi.  Shdki,  the  demon  queller,  is  forcefully  portrayed 
with  menacing  countenance  and  sword  in  hand,  as  he  seeks  to  capture 
the  mischievous  oni,  which,  hiding  behind  the  pine-tree  on  the  reverse 
side,  calls  back  in  defiance  to  his  would-be  persecutor.  Shoki,  one  of 
the  most  conspicuous  figures  in  Japanese  art,  is  another  of  the  char- 
acters adopted  from  the  lore  of  China,  where  he  is  known  as  Chung 
K'wei.  He  is  said  to  have  been  a  ghostly  guardian  of  the  emperor  Genso, 
who  once  in  a  dream  saw  the  young  man  seize  and  eat  a  demon  who 
was  stealing  a  flute  from  the  emperor's  apartment.  On  awaking,  the 
ruler  asked  him  who  he  was,  and  the  guardian  confessed  that  he  had 
been  a  student  of  the  time  of  Kan  no  Koso,  that  he  had  failed  to  pass 
the  imperial  examinations  and  had  slain  himself  in  humiliation.  He  was 
buried  with  high  honors  by  order  of  the  emperor,  and  in  gratitude  his 
spirit  had  vowed  to  expel  all  demons  from  the  kingdom.  In  China  he  is 
represented  as  a  ragged  old  man  accompanied  by  the  bat,  symbolic  of 
happiness ;  but  in  Japan  he  is  usually  pictured,  as  here,  a  large  man 
with  flowing  beard,  wearing  official  garb  and  a  broad  hat  or  Chinese 
cap,  and  carrying  a  two-edged  sword.  He  is  very  often  the  victim  of 
the  demons  whom  he  chases,  and  who  secrete  themselves  out  of  his 


90  Japanese  Sword-Mounts 

reach,  sometimes  on  tall  tree-branches  or  beneath  the  bridge  over  which 
he  is  raging.1 

One  of  the  difficulties  typical  in  the  study  of  the  artists  in  metal-work 
in  Japan  arises  when  one  encounters  the  name  of  Yasuchika,  that  borne 
by  the  artist  who  in  company  with  Toshinaga  I  and  Joi  forms  the 
famous  triumvirate  of  Nara  masters.  His  family  name  is  Tsuchiya, 
and  he  lived  from  1669  to  1744,  using  the  signatures  of  Yasunobu,  Tou, 
and  Yagohachi.  He  was  followed  by  five  artists  of  varying  skill  who 
took  the  name  Yasuchika.  His  own  son  (1694-1747)  and  pupil,  Yasu- 
chika II,  like  his  father,  produced  tsuba  with  fine  decorative  effects,  ex- 
celling the  first  master  in  technical  skill.  These  two  artists  used  the  same 
noms  de  plume,  as  well  as  inscribing  the  name  Yasuchika  in  much  the 
same  manner.  M.  de  Tressan2  finds  that  Yasuchika  II  writes  the  char- 
acter "Yasu"  in  a  more  elongated  manner  than  Yasuchika  I,  and  other 
writers  speak  of  differentiations  which  help  us  to  distinguish  the  work  of 
these  artists,  but,  unfortunately,  do  not  tell  us  what  they  are.  The  third 
Yasuchika  signed  in  cursive.  The  fourth  and  fifth,  both  of  whom  lived 
in  the  early  nineteenth  century,  used  many  names,  all  listed  by  S.  Hara. 
Yasuchika  V  is  represented  here  by  a  tsuba,  which  is  signed  "Tounsai," 
as  well  as  being  inscribed  "Masachika,"  which  is  a  name  adopted  by  Yasu- 
chika VI.  This  occurrence  is  like  adding  insult  to  injury,  making  the 
the  situation  truly  confusion  worse  confounded ! 

Tsuchiya  Yasuchika  I,  in  contrast  with  his  contemporaries,  who  for 
the  most  part  adorned  their  fittings  with  illustrations  of  historical  and 
legendary  subjects,  preferred  purely  decorative  designs.  Doubtless 
he  was  strongly  influenced  in  this  choice  by  the  great  impressionist 
painter  Ogata  Korin,  who  was  a  contemporary  of  his  master  Tatsumasa, 
and  whose  purely  Japanese  nature-studies  with  their  broad,  bold  designs 
are  very  decidedly  reflected  in  the  decoration  of  much  of  the  pottery, 
lacquer  and  metal  work  of  this  period. 

The  second  Yasuchika,  following  his  father's  style  with  improved 
technique,  is  thought  to  be  the  creator  of  the  tsuba  (Plate  XXVII,  Fig. 
1),  which  is  literally  a  painting  in  metal.  The  ground,  a  soft  gray  tone 
of  shibuichi,  is  slightly  chiselled  so  as  to  afford  a  roughened  place 
whereon  may  cling  the  ivy  vine  in  relief  of  two  shades  of  gold  and 
copper.  Through  an  irregular  hole  a  silver  snake,  whose  full  length  is 
coiled  on  the  reverse,  looks  downward  toward  a  large  snail  bearing  its 
shell  upon  its  back  and  reaching  its  tentacles  up  toward  the  vine.    A 

*H.  Joly,  Legend  in  Japanese  Art,  p.  322. 

*L'Evolution  de  la  garde  de  sabre  japonaise  {Bull,  de  la  Soc.  Franco- 
Japonaise,  Vol.  XXV,  p.  55). 


^HBIWU^**"' 


e:  ■   -   - 


The  Nara  School  91 

small  frog  is  inlaid  in  relief  of  gold  on  the  reverse  of  the  tsuba.  No 
conception  of  the  true  beauty  of  the  guard  can  be  gained  from  a  black 
and  white  reproduction,  for  the  genius  of  the  artist  lies  in  the  skillful 
blending  of  the  copper  and  shakudo,  which  has  been  finished  with  a  rare 
treatment  to  produce  the  slimy  body  of  the  snail.  The  shell  likewise  is 
a  masterful  combination  of  shibuichi,  sentoku,  and  shakudo,  so  "mixed" 
as  to  defy  any  detection  of  joining.  This  subject  might  be  termed  the 
"survival  of  the  fittest,"  for  the  popular  interpretation  reads,  "The 
snake  eats  the  frog,  the  frog  eats  the  snail,  and  the  snail  poisons  the 
snake."  The  Japanese  call  this  association  San  Sukime  ("the  Three 
Shrinks"),  and  the  children  use  the  names  of  the  three  animals  in  decid- 
ing who  is  to  be  "it"  in  a  game  by  simultaneously  shouting  one  of  the 
names,  the  "fittest"  remaining  free. 

Reverting  to  the  pictorial  style,  Yasuchika  VI  chose  a  favorite  sub- 
ject for  the  decoration  of  the  tsuba  (Plate  XXVII,  Fig.  2),  which  he 
signed  "Tsuchiya  Masachika  {kakihan)  Tounsai."  On  this  highly  fin- 
ished shibuichi  ground  in  high  relief  of  shakudo,  gold,  copper,  and  silver, 
the  artist  has  pictured  the  poet  Takamura,  a  well-known  scholar  of  the 
ninth  century,  who  rose  from  poverty  to  riches  while  serving  as  customs 
house  officer  for  ships  trading  between  Japan  and  China.  His  enemies 
reported  him  to  the  emperor  as  an  extortioner  and  thief,  and  he  was 
deported  to  Yasoshima,  a  group  of  small  islands  off  the  coast.  He  is 
said  to  have  composed  this  song  and  sung  it  to  the  fishing  boats  as  he 
was  being  carried  off: — 

Wada  na  hara  "Oh !  fishers  in  your  little  boats, 
Yasoshima  kakete  Quick !  tell  my  men,  I  pray, 

Kogi  idcnu  to  They'll  find  me  at  Yasoshima, 

Hito  ni  wa  tsugeyo  I'm  being  rowed  away 

Ama  no  tsuribune.  Far  off  across  the  bay."1 

The  fuchikashira  (Plate  XXVI,  Fig.  3),  likewise  signed  Yasuchika, 
is  the  work  of  one  of  the  nineteenth-century  artists  of  this  name.  In 
high  relief  of  shakudo  with  a  flat  inlaid  decoration  depicting  a  silver 
moon  over  golden  pine-trees  is  an  inro  with  a  cord  and  netsuke  of  gold 
in  calabash  form.  On  the  clamp  a  mouse  of  copper  nibbles  a  paper 
wrapping  (noshi)  inlaid  in  relief  of  gold  within  which  are  two  silver 
folding  fans.  Even  to-day,  there  accompanies  all  gifts  which  are  pre- 
sented in  Japan,  a  piece  of  paper  folded  to  a  quiver-like  form  in  which  is 
inserted  a  strip  of  stretched  and  dried  haliotis  (awabi)  or  a  thin  strip 
of  gold  paper  representing  the  strip  of  shell  fish.    Around  this  flattened 

1 W.  Porter,  A  Hundred  Verses  from  Old  Japan,  p.  11. 


92  Japanese  Sword-Mounts 

package  is  tied  a  red  and  white  paper  cord  (misuhiki),  the  whole  ar- 
rangement being  known  as  noshi  misuhiki.  In  case  one  is  without  the 
materials  necessary  for  carrying  out  this  custom,  the  donor  simply  writes 
noshi  misuhiki  on  a  slip  of  paper  and  encloses  it  with  the  gift.  F. 
Brinkley1  states  that  the  awabi  has  a  double  meaning,  singleness  of 
affection  typified  by  the  mollusk's  single  shell  and  durability  of  love  and 
life,  since  the  dried  haliotis  is  capable  of  being  stretched  (the  word 
noshi  also  means  "to  stretch").  P.  Schiller2  points  out  the  fact  that 
this  "gift  accompaniment"  is  symbolic  of  the  ancient  custom  of  present- 
ing to  pilgrims  on  their  way  to  Ise,  a  gift  of  dried  haliotis.  Some  would 
interpret  the  noshi  misuhiki  as  the  emblem  of  humility,  recalling  to 
mind  the  fact  that  the  founders  of  Japan  were  fishermen. 

Several  other  specimens  of  the  work  of  the  Nara  school  are  included 
in  this  collection,  but  a  mention  of  the  names  of  the  artists  who  produced 
them  may  suffice.  Masanaga,  a  pupil  of  Toshinaga,  the  fourth  master, 
has  signed  an  interesting  iron  tsuba,  on  which  two  long  armed  monkeys 
hang  from  vines  inlaid  in  relief  of  gold.  Munetoshi,  another  pupil  of 
the  same  artist,  has  left  a  landscape  executed  in  relief  of  various  metals 
on  a  shakudo  ground.  Toshiyoshi  Garyuken,  judging  from  the  ornate 
style  of  the  large  copper  tsuba  which  bears  his  signature,  was  one  of 
the  nineteenth-century  artists  of  this  school. 

One  of  the  most  noted  pupils  of  Toshinaga  I  was  Shozui  or  Masa- 
yuki  (1695-1769),  who  founded  a  school  known  as  the  Hamano,  whose 
members  created  some  of  the  finest  objects  of  metal- work,  primarily  in 
the  form  of  fittings  for  the  sword.  Like  those  of  his  master,  most  of 
Masayuki's  designs  are  taken  from  the  history  and  folk-lore  of  the 
country,  although  he  and  his  followers  show  great  originality,  as  well  in 
the  portrayal  of  nature  subjects.  He  worked  in  Yedo,  using  a  multitude 
of  names  which  are  listed  by  S.  Hara,  the  most  common  being  Miboku 
and  Otsuryuken,  both  of  which  appear  on  specimens  in  this  collection. 

The  two  readings  of  the  names  of  the  artists  of  the  Hamano  School 
have  caused  confusion,  which  the  list  below,  copied  from  the  Naunton 
Catalogue,  may  help  to  dispel : — 


Shozui 

—  Masayuki 

Kenzui 

—  Nobuyuki 

Kuzui 

—  Noriyuki 

Hozui 

—  Toshiyuki 

Chokuzui 

—  Naoyuki 

Kozui 

—  Hiroyuki 

Keizui 

—  Nagayuki 

Rizui 

—  Yasuyuki 

Hozui         — 

Kaneyuki 

1  Japan  and  China,  Vol.  VI,  p.  38. 

'Japanische    Geschenksitten,    Mitteilungen    der    Deutchen    Gesellschaft    fur 
Natur-  und  V olkerkunde  Ostasiens,  Vol.  IX,  p.  349. 


BBBwnrBFiiiawsi.uu.r/ 


•  ,«%»<«».*%*» 


The  Hamano  School  93 

Employing  a  variety  of  metals,  brass,  shibuichi,  shakudo,  copper,  and 
iron,  Masayuki  sometimes  worked  in  very  high  relief,  and  again  at 
times  showed  the  influence  of  Joi  in  his  low,  recessed  reliefs.  Both 
these  styles  are  represented  in  the  two  tsuba  herein  illustrated.  The 
first  (Plate  XXVII,  Fig.  3)  is  a  remarkable  piece  of  modelling.  The 
entire  body  of  this  shibuichi  guard  has  been  so  worked  over  as  to  appear 
wax-like  in  texture  and  pliability.  In  flowing  lines  the  artist  has  sculp- 
tured a  rocky  retreat  above  which  is  floating  a  silver  moon,  shedding  its 
light  upon  the  winding  stream,  also  in  relief  of  silver,  that  reflects  a  glow 
by  which  the  scholar  Riuto  is  enabled  to  read.  Being  too  poor  to  pay 
for  oil,  this  Chinese  sage  was  forced  to  depend  upon  the  heavenly 
luminary  for  the  pursuance  of  his  studies;  although  garbed  in  a  robe 
of  apparent  richness  (of  shakudo  with  patterns  inlaid  in  gold  hira- 
zogan),  the  face  of  the  figure  is  that  of  the  self-denying  student. 

Fig.  1  in  Plate  XXVIII  reproduces  a  copper  tsuba  which  is  inscribed 
on  the  reverse  side  Hamano  Masayuki.  On  the  obverse  in  a  more 
delicate  style  of  chiselling  we  read:  gyo  nen  roku  ju  ichi  ("sixty-one 
years  old"),  which  places  the  date  of  this  tsuba  in  the  year  1751.  This 
last  inscription  was  probably  added  by  a  hand  later  than  that  of  Masa- 
yuki. The  pictorial  design  is  brought  out  in  low  relief  and  kebori  with 
a  very  sparing  use  of  gold,  such  as  the  cap  on  the  figure  at  the  right  and 
the  bracelet  and  eyeball  of  the  demon  at  the  left. 

In  the  preface  to  the  Kokinshu,  a  collection  of  ancient  and  modern 
poetry,  completed  in  the  year  922,  Ki  no  Tsurayuki  has  used  the  expres- 
sion that  "gods  and  demons  invisible  to  our  eyes  are  touched  with  sym- 
pathy by  poetry."1  It  is  the  writer's  interpretation  that  Masayuki  on  this 
tsuba  has  taken  Kakinomoto  Hitomaro,  who  is  known  as  the  saint  of 
Japanese  verse,  to  represent  the  embodiment  of  poetry  as  he  leans,  with 
brush  in  hand,  upon  his  low  writing  table  and  genially  watches  the 
horned  and  hairy  demon  grind  his  ink  for  him  upon  the  ink-stone.  Both 
figures  are  continued  in  engraving  and  low  relief  on  the  reverse  side. 
This  arrangement  of  design  seems  to  have  been  a  favorite  custom  with 
Masayuki,  another  specimen  in  this  Museum  having  the  fore  part  of  an 
elephant  in  high  relief  on  the  obverse  side  of  the  tsuba,  while  the  form 
is  completed  on  the  reverse. 

Another  portrait  of  this  eighth-century  poet  Hitomaro  (Plate 
XXVIII,  Fig.  2)  was  drawn  by  Noriyuki  I,  a  pupil  of  Masayuki.  who 
signed  his  specimens  Gaiundo  and  Bosoken.  He  worked  in  Yedo  up 
until  the  time  of  his  death  in  1787,  and  on  account  of  his  painstaking 

1  W.  Aston,  Japanese  Literature,  p.  64. 


94  Japanese  Sword-Mounts 

efforts  and  skill  has  left  some  of  the  most  highly  finished  products  in 
this  branch  of  art.  How  perfectly  has  he  testified  to  the  well-known 
Chinese  and  Japanese  principle  that  caligraphy  is  as  truly  an  art  as 
painting,  in  his  exquisite  cutting  of  the  poem  on  this  narrow  field  of 
only  a  centimeter's  width !  The  poem  is  that  famous  one  given  in  the 
Kokinshu  as  anonymous,  but  attributed  by  critics  to  both  Hitomaro 
and  Takamura.    A  transcription  and  translation  follows : — 

Honobono  to  Dimly 

Akashi  no  ura  no  The  coast  of  Akashi 

Asagiri  ni  In  the  morning  mist 

Shima  kakure  yuku  Concealed  in  the  distance  of  sea 

Fune  wo  shi  so  omou.  Think  of  the  ship. 

A  more  free  version  would  be,  "How  sad  it  is,  while  I  am  sailing  away 
on  the  ship,  to  see  the  beach  of  Akashi  getting  concealed  in  the  dim 
light  of  the  morning  mist!"  B.  Chamberlain1  and  A.  Waley2  have 
each  interpreted  the  poem,  translating  the  word  shima-gakure  as  "island- 
hid."  It  is  an  old  expression,  meaning  "things  hidden  in  the  distance 
of  the  sea,"  and  not  necessarily  denoting  any  island.  Noriyuki  has  evi- 
dently preferred  to  attribute  the  poem  to  Hitomaro  rather  than  to  Taka- 
mura, for  he  has  left  in  this  portrait  a  typical  presentation  of  the 
sainted  old  man. 

On  the  shakudo  tsuba  (Plate  XXVIII,  Fig.  3),  the  same  artist  has 
depicted  with  remarkable  skill  a  Mongol  standing  on  the  rocks  and 
holding  a  bow  from  which  he  has  released  a  feathered  arrow.  In 
relief  of  copper  with  hiraz5gan  of  silver,  a  spotted  deer  stricken 
by  the  shaft  tumbles  backwards.  The  costume,  quiver,  and  bow  of  the 
hunter  are  wrought  out  in  fine  detail  with  reliefs  of  gold,  copper,  and 
silver,  combining  to  make  colorful  effect  against  the  dark  background. 
The  pine  which  is  only  suggested  in  katakiribori  on  the  obverse  is  com- 
pletely chiselled  on  the  opposite  side,  where  it  is  the  dominating  note 
in  a  simple  landscape.  The  seal  of  Noriyuki,  as  inscribed  on  a  small 
shibuichi  tsuba  decorated  with  a  portrait  of  Kwan-Yii  and  his  com- 
panions, may  be  studied  in  Plate  LXI,  Fig.  3. 

The  shakudo-nanako  tsuba  in  Plate  XXIX,  Fig.  1,  is  signed :  Miboku 
Nobuyuki  Otsuryuken,  the  name  of  another  pupil  of  Masayuki  or 
Shozui,  who  used  the  noms  de  plume  of  his  master  quite  freely.  The 
nanako  is  of  exact  execution  and  affords  an  effective  ground  for  the 
high  reliefs  of  various  metals  in  which  the  artist  has  told  the  story  of 
Kanzan  and  Jittoku  watching  the  tiger  of  Bukan  Zenji  (p.  63),  who 

1  Japanese  Poetry,  p.  96. 
'Japanese  Poetry,  p.  55 


BBBWTyBF-Ji.LflttJsi.j.^.i/ 


..  >y^>»**»**-^^ 


The  Hamano  School  95 

guards  the  books  of  knowledge.  These  two  sages,  known  in  China  as 
Hanshin  and  Shi  Tei,  are  usually  represented  as  boyish  figures  with 
laughing  faces  furrowed  with  age.  One  carries  a  scroll  often  blank, 
signifying  the  unwritten  book  of  nature.  The  other  is  usually  seen 
with  a  besom,  the  broom  of  insight,  wisdom,  and  transcendance,  to 
brush  away  worry  and  trouble.1  Jittoku  is  said  to  have  been  found  by 
Bukan  Zenji,  who  at  the  time  received  a  divine  message,  saying  that  the 
boy  was  an  incarnation  of  Buddha.  Here  their  flowing  hair  of  shakudo 
falls  about  their  faces  which  are  inlaid  in  relief  of  copper.  Kanzan 
points  towards  the  crouching  tiger  whose  tense  body  is  modelled  in  curv- 
ing stripes  of  gold  and  shakudo,  and  whose  golden  eyes  show  a  fixed 
ferocity. 

The  pair  of  shakudo  menuki  (Plate  XXIX,  Figs  2A  and  b)  is  prob- 
ably the  work  of  Nobuyuki.  One  is  signed  with  the  character  "Mi,"  the 
other  with  "Boku,"  together  reading  Miboku,  the  artist  name  of  Masa- 
yuki,  which  was  adopted  by  a  number  of  his  followers.  These  small 
pieces  are  in  the  form  of  a  cicada  (semi)  with  closed  wings  modelled 
with  great  artistry  and  an  intimate  knowledge  of  nature. 

Noriyoshi  of  the  Nakazawa  family  should  be  mentioned  as  one  of 
the  talented  pupils  of  Masayuki.  Through  his  efforts  and  those  of 
other  eighteenth-century  artists,  the  quality  of  the  work  of  the  Hamano 
School  in  the  nineteenth  century  likewise  calls  forth  admiration.  A  pupil 
of  Noriyoshi,  by  name  Hisanao,  is  the  author  of  a  beautifully  executed 
tsuba  of  shibuichi  on  which  he  has  modelled  a  tiger  of  shakudo  with 
golden  stripes,  cowering  and  glaring  up  toward  a  swirling  cloud  from 
which  a  dragon  in  gold  is  emerging.  It  is  as  though  this  beast  of  the 
heavens  had  broken  through  from  the  reverse  of  the  guard,  for  on 
that  side  of  the  tsuba  the  writhing  tail  is  disappearing  in  the  rolling 
clouds  sculptured  in  high  relief  from  the  ground  metal.  This  is  a  strik- 
ing presentation  of  this  familiar  subject  which  is  the  Taoist  conception 
of  the  eternal  struggle  between  matter  and  spirit,  "the  ceaseless  con- 
flict of  material  forces  with  the  infinite — the  tiger  roaring  his  inces- 
sant challenge  to  the  unknown  terror  of  the  spirit."2 

In  the  tsuba  by  Nagayuki  (Plate  XXIX,  Fig.  3)  the  artist  has 
produced  the  same  remarkable  effect  of  the  pliability  of  the  shibuichi,  as 
was  evidenced  in  that  first  example  of  Masayuki  (Plate  XXVII,  Fig.  3). 
This  nineteenth-century  artist,  a  pupil  of  Naoyuki,  used  the  name  Kaku- 
yusai  with  which  he  has  signed  this  tsuba  whereon  in  relief  of  copper, 

1  M.  Anesaki,  Buddhist  Art  in  its  Relation  to  Buddhist  Ideals,  p.  56. 
*  Okakura  Kakuzo,  Ideals  of  the  East,  p.  55. 


96  Japanese  Sword-Mounts 

shakudo,  and  gold,  the  Chinese  sage  Rinnasei  (Lin  Hwo-ching)  is  lean- 
ing over  a  blossoming  plum-tree  and  watching  a  young  attendant  feed  a 
crane. 

An  interesting  ceremony  practised  during  the  Setsu  bun  or  beginning 
of  the  natural  year  when  winter  softens  into  spring  is  that  known  as 
the  tsuina  or  oni  yarai  ("demon  driving").  At  the  present  day  it  is 
performed  either  by  the  householder  or  a  professional  exorciser  of 
demons,  called  yaku  otoshi,  who  wanders  through  the  streets  with  his 
staff  (shakujo)  and  small  stand  (sambo)  filled  with  dried  peas  or  beans 
(shiro  mame).  For  a  small  fee  he  recites  a  Buddhist  sutra  and  scat- 
ters the  peas  into  every  corner,  shouting  at  the  same  time,  "Demons  out, 
good  fortune  in"  (Oni  wa  soto,  fuku  wa  uchi),  thus  exorcising  all  evil 
influences  from  the  place.  According  to  Hearn,1  the  "peas"  are  swept 
up  and  preserved  until  the  first  peal  of  thunder  when  they  are  cooked 
and  eaten,  each  person  eating  one  more  than  the  number  of  the  years 
of  his  age.  W.  Aston,2  on  the  other  hand,  in  tracing  the  history  of  this 
ceremony,  specifies  the  use  of  beans,  which  he  states  were  gathered  up 
and  wrapped  in  a  paper  with  a  small  copper  coin  which  had  been  rubbed 
over  the  body  to  transfer  the  ill  luck.  These  were  then  thrown  away, 
thereby  flinging  away  misfortune. 

After  the  performance  of  the  oni  yarai,  there  is  stuck  up  at  all 
entrances  a  small  charm  consisting  of  the  head  of  a  dried  sardine 
(iwashi)  and  a  branch  of  holly  (see  Plate  LV,  Fig.  1).  Of  this  the 
demons  are  said  to  be  afraid,  and  on  that  account  will  not  re-enter  the 
house.  An  incident  in  this  ceremony  is  eloquently  told  on  the  kozuka  of 
shibuichi  (Plate  XXIX,  Fig.  4)  by  Chikayuki  Ihosai,  one  of  the  later 
Hamano  artists,  who  lived  in  the  first  half  of  the  nineteenth  century. 

Buddhist  subjects  were  often  utilized  to  decorate  the  swords  in  the 
nineteenth  century ;  and  an  interesting,  quadrilobed  tsuba  by  Masaharu 
Genshosai3  bears  upon  a  dark  shibuichi  ground  carefully  sculptured 
the  figures  of  two  interesting  deities  ( Plate  XXX,  Fig.  1 ) .  They  are  the 
attendants  of  Acala,  known  in  Japan  as  Fudo  Mio  O  (Akshara),  that 
deity  who  is  identified  with  the  god  of  wisdom,  Dainichi  (Vairocana). 
At  the  top,  appearing  in  the  softly  sculptured  clouds  in  high  relief  of 
copper  gilt,  is  Seitaka  Doji,  the  female  deity,  who  in  paintings  is  usually 
colored  pink  and  pictured  as  holding  a  lotus,  as  she  does  in  this  repre- 
sentation.    Below,  emerging  as  from  a  rocky  cavern,  stands  Kongara 

1  Glimpses  of  Unfamiliar  Japan,  Vol.  II,  p.  498. 

2  Shinto,  p.  308. 

8  This  artist  is  placed  among  the  Hamano  in  accordance  with  the  views  of 
H.  Joly  rather  than  among  the  Tamagawa,  according  to  P.  Vautier. 


IWAMA    MASAYOSHI    AND   HlS    FOLLOWERS  97 

Doji,  a  male  deity  of  grim  aspect,  holding  a  large  iron  club.  His  lower 
garment  and  floating  shoulder  draperies  are  also  of  gilded  copper.  He  is 
always  painted  in  a  strong  red  color. 

The  reverse  is  carved  and  inlaid  with  relief  of  copper,  gold,  and  silver 
to  represent  a  giant  pine  with  delicate  needles  overhanging  a  silver  water- 
fall. Acala  is  generally  represented  as  seated  near  a  waterfall  with 
flames  surrounding  his  head.  How  characteristic  of  the  true  artist  is 
this  motive  on  the  reverse  side  of  the  tsuba  in  its  subtle  suggestiveness 
of  the  spirit  of  the  main  deity  whose  attendants  appear  in  full  sculp- 
tured form  for  those  who  must  see  in  order  to  believe !  Truly  has  it 
been  said  of  the  Hamano  school  that  it  did  not  give  one  inferior  artist 
to  Japan. 

A  separate  atelier,  though  a  direct  branch  of  the  Hamano  school, 
was  that  founded  and  presided  over  by  Iwama  Masayoshi  Katsuryuken, 
who  was  a  pupil  of  Hamano  Nobuyuki.  On  account  of  his  bold,  high 
reliefs  which  were  very  realistic,  he  became  a  leader  in  his  art  in  the 
nineteenth  century;  he  lived  between  the  years  1763  and  1837.  His 
many  noms  de  plume  are  listed  by  S.  Hara.1  He  often  imitated  the 
work  of  Masayuki  or  Shozui  and  sometimes  signed  the  pieces  executed 
after  the  manner  of  that  master,  Shozui  Bo. 

Among  his  many  followers  is  Nobuyuki,  his  adopted  son,  who  used 
the  name  Ichiryuken  (for  his  kakihan,  see  Plate  LXI,  Fig.  4).  The 
most  famous  pupil  of  Masayoshi  was  Nobuyoshi  of  the  Hata  family, 
who,  in  addition  to  his  many  other  names,  often  inscribed  his  work 
with  the  honorary  title  Hogen  ("Eye  of  the  Law").  His  technique  is 
excellent  and,  though  at  times  his  work  may  be  over-decorated,  it  calls 
forth  real  admiration.  The  tsuba  (Plate  XXX,  Fig.  2)  combines  all  of 
the  richness  of  decoration  and  treatment  which  was  fast  tending  toward 
ornateness  in  the  middle  of  the  nineteenth  century  when  this  guard  was 
made.  It  is  inscribed:  Nobuyoshi  (kakihan)  Oite  To  jo  Shinobugaoka 
no  yu  kan,  Kaei  ni  tsuchi  no  tori  sei  wa  ("Nobuyoshi  of  Yedo  made 
this  amid  the  peaceful  scenery  of  Shinobugaoka,  in  the  second  [rooster] 
year  of  Kaei";  that  is,  1849).  On  the  reverse  side  is  his  seal  in  the 
form  of  a  koro  (see  Plate  LXI,  Fig.  5).  Glyptic  skill  of  a  very  high 
quality  is  evidenced  on  this  tsuba  of  sentoku,  for  the  clouds  and  waves 
are  so  masterfully  sculptured  as  to  seem  to  have  been  the  creations  of 
a  blowing  storm  which  has  passed  over  the  molten  metal.  Golden  flecks 
of  foam  drip  from  the  curling  crests  of  the  waves,  while  in  the  soar- 
ing clouds  inlaid  bits  of  gold  in  imitation  of  nashiji  lacquer  accentuate 

1  Die  Meister  der  japanischen   Schwertzierathen,  p.  80. 


98  Japanese  Sword-Mounts 

the  sweeping  lines  of  the  sky.  Nobuyoshi  has  left  upon  this  small  field 
a  truly  noble  portrait  of  Komei  (Chu-ko  Liang),  the  great  tactician  of 
the  Chinese  emperor,  Chao  Lieh  Ti,  known  to  the  Japanese  as  Gen- 
toku  (p.  114).  He  is  standing  on  a  wind-swept  rock  overhanging  the 
waves;  and,  holding  his  two-edged  sword  upright  as  in  dedication,  he 
looks  downward  toward  the  stormy  sea.  In  high  relief  of  gold  his 
fluttering  garments  are  blown  back  from  his  bared  feet,  and  his  long 
hair  and  beard  are  streaming  with  the  wind. 

The  design  on  the  fuchikashira  (Plate  XXX,  Fig.  3),  which  is  also 
by  Nobuyoshi,  is  accomplished  in  a  more  restrained  vein.  The  ground 
is  a  shakudo  nanako  over  which,  on  the  clamp,  a  scaly  serpent  in  relief 
of  silver  moves  through  a  clump  of  blossoms  of  the  wandering  jew 
(Commelina,  tsuyukusa  in  Japanese).  On  the  head-piece  a  small  butter- 
fly in  relief  of  gold  flies  over  the  head  of  a  praying  mantis,  an  insect 
which  is  often  depicted  in  Japan  and  China  and  one  much  admired  on 
account  of  its  courage  and  daring.  The  story  as  told  in  a  Chinese  work 
of  second  century  b.c.  is  quoted  as  follows  in  Laufer's  "Jade"  (p.  267)  : 

"When  the  Duke  Chang  of  Tsi  (794-731  B.C.)  once  went  ahunt- 
ing,  there  was  a  mantis  raising  its  feet  and  seizing  the  wheel  of  his 
chariot.  He  questioned  his  charioteer  as  to  this  insect,  who  said  in 
reply,  'This  is  a  mantis ;  it  is  an  insect  who  knows  how  to  advance,  but 
will  never  know  how  to  retreat ;  without  measuring  its  strength,  it  easily 
offers  resistance.  The  Duke  answered,  'Truly,  if  it  were  a  man  it  would 
be  the  champion-hero  of  the  Empire.'  Then  he  turned  his  chariot  to 
dodge  it,  and  this  act  won  him  all  heroes  to  go  over  to  his  side." 

A  most  appropriate  design  is  this  for  the  decoration  of  the  sword, 
which  though  it  had  by  this  time  developed  into  an  almost  purely 
ornamental  weapon,  was  still  the  embodiment  of  the  samurai  spirit.1 

1  Many  interesting  inscriptions  appropriate  for  the  warrior  appeared  on 
tsuba  and  kozuka  in  this  period,  as  well  as  on  the  earlier  weapons.  These  may 
be  studied  in  the  scholarly  article  by  H.  Joly,  Inscriptions  on  Japanese  Sword 
Fittings  (Transactions  of  the  Japan  Soc,  Vol.  XV.  pp  86-117). 


XL    THE  SCHOOLS  OF  BUSHtJ  AND  CHOSHU 
TETSUGENDO  ARTISTS 

In  contrast  to  the  alloyed  fittings  of  the  Kara  and  Hamano  schools 
one  sees  many  tsuba  and  other  fittings  of  iron,  which  were  likewise  made 
in  the  shogun's  capital  by  certain  independent  artists,  who  were  con- 
temporaries of  the  groups  discussed  in  the  preceding  chapter.  The 
work  of  the  ltd  masters  has  already  been  commented  upon,  following 
the  account  of  the  Umetada  family,  for  the  style  of  these  remarkable 
specimens  of  sukashibori  was  inaugurated  by  a  Umetada  pupil.  These, 
as  well  as  Akasaka  tsuba,  are  commonly  classed  under  the  name 
"Bushu,"  which  is  the  Sino- Japanese  reading  of  Musashi,  the  province 
of  which  Yedo  is  the  main  city. 

That  term  has  been  reserved  in  this  study  to  include  tsuba  makers 
who  worked  independently,  as  far  as  is  known,  or  those  who  belonged 
to  small  groups  whose  products  were  not  limited  to  any  particular  style, 
but  which,  on  the  contrary,  though  almost  always  of  iron,  reflect  the 
influence  of  several  of  the  larger  schools. 

These  guards  are  generally  signed  by  the  artist's  name  followed  by 
the  inscription  "a  dweller  in  Bushu."  Such  is  true  of  the  tsuba  (Plate 
XXXI,  Fig.  I ) ,  which  is  signed  Masanori  Bushu  ju.  On  studying  the 
design,  one  is  again  reminded  of  the  Chinese  landscapes  which  inspired 
so  many  of  the  metal  workers,  particularly  those  in  Choshu  Province,  as 
will  be  seen  in  the  following  pages. 

This  artist,  Masanori,  is  not  listed  either  in  the  So  ken  Kisho  or  in 
S.  Hara's  indispensable  record  of  the  makers  of  sword-fittings,  but 
judging  from  the  quality  of  his  work  as  displayed  on  this  guard,  he  was 
a  skilled  craftsman,  as  well  as  a  man  of  deep  artistic  feeling.  Having 
so  treated  the  iron  as  to  produce  a  wax-like  patina  of  dark  brown,  he  has 
chiselled  on  both  sides  portions  of  a  landscape  in  Chinese  style  which, 
though  in  monotone,  open  up  vistas  of  distinct  charm.  In  the  fore- 
ground an  old  gnarled  pine  clutches  with  its  roots  the  rocky  ground 
whereon  the  figure  of  a  man,  bent  with  age  and  leaning  on  a  staff,  is 
standing,  overlooking  an  abyss.  Above  and  beyond  are  the  inevitable 
pagoda  roofs  and  the  towering  mountains  with  trees  hanging  from  the 
crevices.    Many  such  landscapes  appear  on  Bushu  guards. 

While  most  of  the  members  of  the  Okada  family  worked  in  Choshu, 
Masatoyo  dwelt  in  Yedo  in  the  first  half  of  the  nineteenth  century  and 

99 


ioo  Japanese  Sword-Mounts 

reflected  in  his  sword-fittings  the  style  of  his  master  Masatsune  of  the 
ltd  family,  who  sometimes  signed  his  products  Jingoro.  In  low  relief 
with  slight  touches  of  gold  nunome-zogan,  the  artist  has  depicted  a 
favorite  pair  of  subjects  on  the  tsuba  here  reproduced  (Plate  XXXI, 
Figs.  2-3).  On  the  obverse,  at  the  right,  is  Futen  or  Fujin  (Feng  Pe), 
the  wind  god  of  imp-like  appearance  releasing  from  his  large  bag  a 
tempest  which  turns  into  rolling  clouds  at  the  left.  These  are  con- 
tinued on  the  reverse  side  of  the  tsuba,  where  the  thunder  god,  Raiden  or 
Kaminari  Sama,  leaping  through  rain  and  lightning  flashes,  makes 
ready  with  his  sticks  to  strike  the  resounding  thunder  drums.  Usually 
eight  in  number,  these  drums  are  decorated  with  the  mitsu-tomoye  mo- 
tive and  secured  to  a  semi-circular  brace  which  passes  behind  Raiden's 
shoulders  and  over  his  head.  Three  of  the  drums  may  be  distinguished 
behind  the  god's  body,  which  is  well  modelled,  and  that  of  a  muscular, 
ferocious  demon  with  fangs. 

The  names  Nobufusa  and  Yoshifusa,  dwellers  of  Bushu,  are  in- 
scribed upon  two  tsuba,  each  of  which  is  of  iron  and  in  the  form  of  an 
animal.  The  first  artist  has  modelled  a  tethered  ox  in  recumbent  posi- 
tion, cleverly  chased  in  the  round  so  as  to  represent  on  the  obverse  the 
front  view,  while  on  the  reverse  the  under  part  of  the  body  and  the 
legs  of  the  animal  are  sculptured.  A  standing  horse  whose  bridle  lies 
upon  the  ground  and  outlines  the  lower  part  of  the  rim,  forms  the  guard 
signed  by  Yoshifusa  (Plate  XXXII,  Fig.  1),  an  unknown  artist,  so  far 
as  the  records  go,  and  one  not  to  be  confused  with  several  other  artists 
of  this  name  written  with  different  characters. 

Strongly  influenced  by  Soten  of  Hikone  was  one  sword-guard  maker 
by  name  Horiguchi  Goro,  who  lived  in  Hashu,  but  who  travelled  to 
Bushu,  as  we  learn  from  the  iron  tsuba  in  this  Museum  (Plate  XXXII, 
Fig.  2).  There  is  a  tsuba  in  the  Naunton  collection  (No.  975),  which  is 
signed  "Horiguchi  Genjo,"  evidently  the  name  of  another  member  of  the 
same  family.  Nothing  more  can  be  found  regarding  these  artists.  The 
subject  depicted  on  this  guard  is  the  famous  encounter  between  Wata- 
nabe  and  the  Oni  at  Rashomon  gate.  This  tenth-century  hero  was  the 
retainer  of  Minamoto  no  Yorimitsu,  known  as  Raiko,  the  warrior  who 
slew  the  Spider  Demon  and  hosts  of  ogres  and  goblins.  Thinking  that 
his  master  had  banished  all  of  the  demons,  Watanabe,  on  hearing  of  a 
creature  which  appeared  at  night  on  the  gate  of  Rashomon  near  Kyoto, 
boastingly  wrote  out  a  challenge  which  he  signed  with  his  name  and 
stuck  upon  the  gate  post.  There  at  Rashomon  he  took  his  place  and 
awaited  the  visitor.  Watching  until  late  in  the  night,  he  fell  asleep,  but 
was  soon  wakened  by  a  tug  at  his  helmet.    Thrusting  his  sword  into  the 


aBBSmfWUfltwi.^:^' 


--.  -  .- 


ruivuv 


4  »^>-v *"■»-• 


Schools  of  Choshu  ioi 

dark,  he  struck  something,  which,  with  a  terrible  shriek,  hurried  away, 
leaving  behind  a  large  arm.  This  he  carried  away  and  hid  in  a  strong 
box,  never  showing  it  to  any  one,  until  one  day  an  old  woman,  who 
said  she  was  his  nurse,  begged  to  see  it.  As  he  opened  the  box,  she 
turned  into  a  witch,  seized  the  arm  and  ran  off.  The  artist  has  chosen 
that  moment  when  Watanabe  wakens  and  seizes  his  sword  to  strike 
the  demon  which  is  above  on  the  gate  in  relief  of  copper.  Watanabe's 
determined  face  is  inlaid  in  the  same  metal,  while  the  details  of  his 
armor  are  carefully  picked  out  in  gold  nunome.  His  frightened  horse 
gallops  away  on  the  reverse  side,  where  the  storm  clouds  roll  above 
the  wooden  gateway. 

It  does  not  seem  necessary  to  detail  further  the  products  of  the 
Bushii  metal-workers ;  for  they  are  many,  and  their  work,  while  good  in 
quality  and  interesting  in  subject,  is  not  extraordinary.  They  were 
strongly  influenced  in  their  designs  by  certain  artists  in  Choshu  Prov- 
ince, on  the  opposite  side  of  the  mainland  and  much  to  the  south  of 
Yedo.  These  men  modelled  some  tsuba  of  unusual  beauty.  Particularly 
is  this  true  of  those  iron  guards  with  black  patina  which  bear  upon 
their  chiselled  surfaces  charming  landscapes  in  Chinese  style  taken  from 
paintings  of  the  Sesshii  and  Kano  schools.  In  this  vein  did  certain 
members  of  the  Okada  family  work,  one  of  whom,  as  we  have  seen, 
migrated  to  Bushu. 

Established  by  Nobumasa  at  the  end  of  the  seventeenth  century,  the 
Okada  family,  for  several  generations,  dwelt  in  Hagi  in  Choshu,  having 
come  there  from  Kyoto.  A  tsuba  by  Masatomo,  one  of  the  later  workers 
of  this  group  (Plate  XXXII,  Fig.  3),  illustrates  the  tendencies  of  this 
family  in  the  art  of  metal  work.  The  subject  is  that  of  a  simple  land- 
scape in  the  foreground  of  which  three  horses  are  grazing  in  a  mountain 
pass.  A  fourth,  sculptured  in  the  same  low  relief,  gallops  along  the 
water's  edge  on  the  reverse  side  of  the  guard.  A  tsuba  by  Nakahara 
Yukitoshi  (1800)  is  adorned  with  a  landscape  in  pure  Chinese  style. 
The  unusual  surface  of  this  and  other  Choshu  examples  was  brought  out 
by  a  pickling  process  which  gave  to  the  iron  a  glowing,  black  color 
similar  to  that  of  the  Satsuma  tsuba.  Many  of  the  Choshu  workers 
utilized  this  method  of  treating  their  iron,  as  is  evidenced  in  certain 
pieces  made  by  members  of  the  Nakai  family  who  are  said  to  have  been 
chisellers  of  sword-furniture  as  early  as  the  fourteenth  century. 

It  was  in  the  seventeenth  century,  however,  that  Nakai  Nobutsune, 
the  founder  of  this  school  in  Choshu,  came  to  Hagi  and  began  to  attract 
attention  on  account  of  his  excellent  work.  He  was  followed  by  Tomo- 
yuki  and  Tomotsune  who  perfected  a  style  of  chiselling  a  jour  which 


102  Japanese  Sword-Mounts 

was  carried  on  by  many  nineteenth-century  artists.  Among  them  was 
Yukimitsu  of  the  Isobe  family  who  used  the  name  Gennojo.  From 
black  iron  he  has  skillfully  sculptured  a  tsuba  (Plate  XXXIII,  Fig.  i) 
in  which  he  has  combined  a  naturalistic  design  of  gourd  vines  and 
fruits  with  the  formal  crest  of  two  famous  families.  On  either  side  of 
the  guard  there  are  two  mon  in  the  form  of  a  double  flower  of  five 
petals.  This  crest  is  that  of  the  Ota  family  which  was  represented  by 
daimyo  in  the  provinces  Musashi,  Dewa,  Tamba,  and  Yamato,  from  the 
early  fifteenth  century  on.1  The  other  crest,  a  circle  with  two  bars, 
which  appears  only  once  on  each  side  of  this  tsuba,  was  at  one  time 
adopted  by  the  Hosokawa  family,  but  is  generally  associated  with  that 
of  the  Narita,  daimyo  under  the  Tokugawa  shoguns.  The  origin  of 
the  design  of  this  crest  is  interestingly  told  by  T.  McClatchie,2  "The 
founder  of  this  family,  so  the  tale  runs,  was  once  engaged  in  one  of 
the  frequent  wars  on  the  eastern  marches  of  Japan,  and  his  provisions 
having  failed,  was  put  to  great  straits  to  obtain  food, — a  battle  being 
imminent  at  the  time.  Casting  his  eyes  around,  he  espied  in  the  moun- 
tains a  small  shrine,  and  entering  this,  found  laid  therein  as  an  offering  a 
bowl  of  rice  and  a  pair  of  chopsticks.  The  pangs  of  hunger  overcame 
any  religious  scruples  that  Narita  may  have  possessed;  he  seized  the 
bowl  and  devoured  the  rice,  and  refreshed  by  this  timely  sustenance, 
went  forth  and  bore  himself  gallantly  in  the  fight.  In  it  he  earned  con- 
siderable distinction,  and  ascribing  this  to  the  favor  of  the  deity  whose 
shrine  he  had  invaded,  he  took  for  his  badge  the  circle  and  two  lines  as 
a  rough  delineation  of  the  rice-bowl  and  chopsticks." 

The  cherry-blossom  seems  to  have  inspired  certain  Choshti  artists 
who  usually  carved  it  in  an  informal  all-over  design  with  occasional 
spaces  of  openwork.  Tomohisa  of  the  Yamachi  family  states  on  a 
tsuba  in  this  collection  (Plate  XXXIII,  Fig.  2)  that  he  was  a  resident 
of  Hagi.  He  sometimes  signed  his  mounts  "Sakunoshin."  The  guard 
is  in  the  form  of  an  elongated  cross  with  squared  corners,  and  the 
iron  is  of  a  soft  brown  texture.  Within  the  narrow,  plain  rim  are 
full  blown  cherry-blossoms  with  stamens  tipped  with  gold  relief  and 
tight  buds  finished  with  kebori.  Tsunenaga  records  on  an  iron  tsuba 
that  he  was  a  resident  of  Hagi.  Thereon  he  has  carved  in  the  round 
several  blossoms  and  leaves  of  the  omodaka  (Alisma  plantago). 

Another  design  based  on  a  naturalistic  motive  is  treated  freely  on 
the  tsuba  of  very  black  iron  inscribed  with  the  signature  of  Toyoaki 

*H.  Strohl,  Japanisches  Wappenbuch,  pp.  134-135;  and  E.  Papinot,  Diction- 
naire  d'histoire  et  de  geographie  du  Japon,  p.  580. 

'Japanese  Heraldry  (Transactions  Asiatic  Soc.  of  Japan,  Vol.  V,  p.  61). 


-  »  - v.- ^..-. 


Tetsugendo  Artists  103 

(Plate  XXXIII,  Fig.  3).  This  nineteenth-century  artist  was  the  son 
of  Tomokata  of  the  Okamoto  family.  On  the  reverse  of  the  tsuba  is 
incised  Shukud  hitsu  ("from  a  painting  of  Shukuo").  After  the  man- 
ner of  some  of  the  Higo  guards,  this  piece  is  formed  by  the  round 
carving  of  a  gnarled  trunk  of  the  plum-tree  with  budding  and  blos- 
soming branches  finished  with  surface  engraving  and  inlays  of  gold  in 
the  centres  of  the  flowers. 

Much  of  the  low-relief  chasing  seen  in  Choshu  work  is  lightened 
with  inlay  of  nunome-zogan,  which  may  have  been  due  to  the  influence 
of  Umetada  Myoju  who  was  at  this  time  creating  his  examples  of  inlay. 
It  more  often  suggests,  however,  on  account  of  its  broad  treatment,  the 
work  of  the  Shoami  or  even  that  of  Soten  of  Hikone.  Particularly  is 
this  true  of  the  figures  which  appear  on  the  sword-fittings  made  by  the 
members  of  the  Tetsugendo  school  which  was  founded  by  Okamoto 
Naoshige  of  Choshu  in  the  eighteenth  century.  Though  he  moved  to 
Kyoto  where  he  set  up  his  atelier  called  Tetsugendo  ("Hall  of  the  Iron 
Principle"),  he  is  always  associated  with  the  Choshu  group,  since  the 
family  Okamoto  from  which  he  sprang  was  one  of  the  most  famous  in 
the  whole  province.  Naoshige  used  the  names  Toshiyuki  and  Shoraku, 
often  writing  the  former  in  seal  characters  inlaid  in  gold.  He  was  fol- 
lowed by  a  nephew,  Xaofusa,  who,  possessed  of  considerable  talent,  did 
not  carve  the  forceful  designs  which  Naoshige  sculptured.  Hanabusa 
Itcho,  the  celebrated  painter  who  died  in  1724,  is  said  to  have  influenced 
the  designs  adopted  by  Naoshige.  Though  he  painted  several  nature- 
studies  of  great  beauty,  he  is  particularly  famed  for  his  comic  drawings, 
and  satirical  designs  which  finally  were  the  cause  of  his  banishment. 
There  are  in  this  collection  two  kashira  made  of  brown  wax-like  iron, 
which  may  have  been  taken  directly  from  some  of  this  master's  draw- 
ings. Each  is  in  the  form  of  a  mask  with  crooked  nose  and  wrinkled 
brow  and  with  the  corners  of  the  toothless  mouth  drawn  down 
(Plate  XXXIV,  Fig.  1).  The  skin  seems  to  be  that  of  withered  age, 
and  apparently  hangs  in  soft  folds.  This  little  sculpture  is  signed 
with  the  seal,  in  gold,  used  by  the  Tetsugendo  artists. 

The  same  signature  is  to  be  seen  on  the  tsuba  (Plate  XXXIV, 
Fig.  2),  decorated  with  a  design  which  was  used  over  and  over  again  on 
fittings  made  by  this  group.  This  may  not  be  an  original  work  of  either 
Naoshige  or  Naofusa,  for  their  work  was  much  imitated,  and  this  par- 
ticular motive  seems  to  have  been  the  common  property  of  all  their  fol- 
lowers. 'Whether  it  is  taken  from  a  design  of  Hanabusa  Itcho  is  not 
known.     We  do  know,  however,  that  a  similar  storm-picture,  included 


104  Japanese  Sword-Mounts 

among  the  paintings  owned  by  the  British  Museum,  is  attributed  to 
Hanabusa  Itcho.1  On  both  sides  of  the  tsuba  a  storm  rages,  the  rain 
falling  in  slanting  lines,  the  lightning  flashing  from  out  the  sweeping 
clouds  and  people  everywhere  hurrying  to  shelter.  Above  the  thatched 
roof  of  the  cottage,  where  four  men  huddle,  may  be  seen  Raiden,  the 
thunder  god,  with  four  of  his  drums  decorated  with  the  mitsu-tomoye. 
The  faces  of  the  people  are  inlaid  in  relief  of  copper  and  silver,  the 
lightning  is  in  relief  of  gold. 

Executed  in  the  manner  of  the  Tetsugendo  school  is  the  unsigned 
fuchikashira  of  iron  (Plate  XXXIV,  Fig.  3).  The  sculpturing  of  the 
brown  iron  on  the  fuchi  is  unusually  good.  As  though  done  in  repousse, 
the  writhing  form  of  the  eight-headed  dragon  emerges,  scattering  the 
golden,  foam-flecked  waves  and  angrily  looking  with  flaming  eyes  be- 
neath shaggy  brows  toward  Suzano-wo  who  stands  on  the  head-piece.  He 
is  a  heavy  set,  bearded  figure  with  one  hand  thrust  forward,  the  other 
behind  him  gripping  his  weapon  ready  to  sever  the  eight  heads  with 
flaming  fangs  from  the  neck  of  the  beast.  The  details  on  the  hero's 
armor  are  outlined  in  gold  relief ;  his  eyes  are  of  gold,  in  his  ear  is  a 
ring,  and  on  his  forehead,  a  fillet  of  the  same  metal.  It  is  not  often 
that  one  finds  the  dragon  truthfully  portrayed  with  all  eight  heads  in 
accordance  with  the  legend  as  told  in  the  Kojiki  (see  p.  25).  Many 
similar  fittings  have  the  dragon,  but  only  two  or  three  heads  are  visible. 
The  subject  is  naturally  a  most  appropriate  one  with  which  to  adorn 
the  sword,  for  it  will  be  remembered  that  after  the  beheading  of  the 
beast,  Suzano-wo's  sword  struck  something  hard  in  the  tail  of  the  dragon  ; 
and  on  cutting  it  open,  he  discovered  the  great  double-edged  sword 
which  is  one  of  the  three  sacred  emblems  of  Japan. 

'W.  Anderson,  Cat.  of  Japanese  and  Chinese  Paintings  in  the  British 
Museum,  p.  376. 


QflUJiti  iMU$ 


tt\  or  III 


•  Vi  'iHW. 


XII.    THE    YOKOYA    SCHOOL    AND    ITS    SUBSIDIARY 

BRANCHES,  THE  IWAMOTO,  YANAGAWA,  SANO 

AND  INAGAWA  FAMILIES 

Of  all  the  groups  of  artists  who  made  artistic  sword-fittings  in  the 
late  seventeenth  and  eighteenth  centuries,  none  won  and  held  a  higher 
reputation  than  the  Yokoya.  This  school  was  founded  by  a  pupil  of 
the  Goto  family,  by  name  Yokoya  Soyo,  an  artist  whose  skill  was  so 
keenly  appreciated  by  the  shogun  that  he  was  pensioned  for  life  by  the 
generalissimo  and  came  from  Kyoto  to  dwell  at  the  military  capital, 
where  he  worked  until  his  death  in  1690.  His  products  are  extremely 
rare  even  in  Japan,  and  may  be  signed  by  any  of  the  following  names : 
Moritsugu  (written  in  two  ways),  Morinobu,  and  Tomokane.  He 
made  forceful  carvings  in  relief  reflecting  the  Goto  style,  and  also  is 
known  to  have  worked  in  katakiribori.  Soyo  was  followed  by  four  artists 
of  his  name,  who  adopted  distinguishing  noms  de  plume  and  different 
kakihan.  While  many  of  their  tsuba  are  of  admirable  quality  and 
execution,  they  are  all  overshadowed  by  the  beautiful  work  of  Yokoya 
Somin,  known  as  Tomotsune  and  Tonan,  as  well  as  Chojiro  in  early 
life  and  Jihei  in  later  years.  This  artist  was  an  adopted  grandson  of 
the  founder  of  the  school.  He  died  in  1733  at  the  age  of  sixty- four. 
In  contradistinction  to  Soyo's  exclusive  patronage,  Somin  is  said  to 
have  proudly  devoted  himself  to  machi-bori  ("street  carving")  or 
working  to  general  order,  though  he  had  inherited  the  position  of  chisel- 
ler  to  the  Yedo  court.1 

He,  like  Soyo,  was  succeeded  by  a  number  of  followers  and  imita- 
tors, many  of  whom  boldly  used  the  names  of  the  two  great  artists  in 
signing  work  which  is  obviously  inferior  either  to  that  of  the  masters 
or  their  devoted  pupils.  Somin  remains  unexcelled  in  his  chiselling 
in  katakiribori ,  the  method  of  cutting  indulged  in  by  Joi  and  Soyo,  but 
never  brought  to  its  perfection  and  full  power  until  Somin  took  up  the 
chisel.  A  few  rare  specimens  done  by  him  in  relief  are  greatly  prized. 
For  subjects,  he  preferred  tigers,  mythical  lions  (kara-shishi) ,  flowers, 
especially  the  peony,  and  figures  of  Hotei,  or  the  demon-queller  Shoki. 

On  a  pair  of  menuki,  of  diamond  shape,  one  half  gold,  the  other 
shibuichi  (Plate  XXXV,  Figs,  ia  and  b),  the  last  mentioned  favorite 
figure  with  the  accompanying  demon  is  masterfully  cut  in  katakiribori. 

1F.  Brinkley,  Japan  and  China,  Vol.  VII,  p.  274. 
105 


106  Japanese  Sword-Mounts 

One  of  the  menuki  is  signed  "Somin"  with  kakihan.  No  trace  is  there 
of  an  after-stroke  of  the  hammer  on  the  chisel  to  deepen  the  lines;  all 
seems  to  have  been  performed  in  one  unerring  effort.  The  hair  and 
features  of  the  hero  are  limned  with  the  greatest  delicacy,  and  repro- 
duce, as  the  artist  wished,  the  light  strokes  drawn  by  the  painter.  The 
garment  is  boldly  cut  in  lines  of  varying  depth  suggesting  the  marks  of 
a  fully  inked  brush.  It  is  possible  that  this  design  was  taken  directly 
from  a  drawing  by  Hanabusa  Itcho,  the  master  of  comic  representations 
referred  to  in  the  preceding  chapter;  for  Somin  is  known  to  have 
freely  borrowed  designs  both  from  him  and  from  Kano  Tanyu.1  Two 
volumes  of  great  interest  are  mentioned  by  M.  De  Tressan,2  the  Somin 
zu  shiki  and  the  Soyo  zu  shiki  (designs  of  Somin  and  Soyo),  which  are 
in  the  Musee  Guimet  in  Paris.  From  these  one  would  judge  that  Somin 
confined  himself  to  the  decoration  of  the  smaller  fittings,  especially  the 
kozuka — a  theory  in  which  Wada  concurs,  but  which  Joly  does  not 
accept.3  Certain  tsuba  signed  "Somin"  are  of  such  extraordinary  work- 
manship that  they  could  hardly  have  been  made  by  any  other  than  this 
master. 

One  should  constantly  keep  in  mind,  however,  that  all  work  signed 
"Soyo"  and  "Somin"  is  not  necessarily  the  product  of  one  of  these 
masters.  The  school  is  a  large  one,  including  forty  or  fifty  pupils, 
among  whom  are  four  Soyo  and  four  Somin,  all  of  whom  followed 
the  style  of  katakiribori,  to  a  great  extent.  The  tsuba  of  shibuichi 
(Plate  XXXV,  Fig.  2)  signed  "Somin"  with  kakihan  is  of  particular 
interest  on  account  of  its  close  resemblance  to  one  in  the  Naunton  col- 
lection (Plate  LIX,  No.  1727).  The  subject  of  the  design  on  both 
guards  is  the  legend  of  Tadamori  and  the  oil  thief  (p.  88).  Both  tsuba 
are  obviously  made  from  the  same  design.  The  Naunton  specimen  is 
executed  in  excellent  katakiribori,  and  is  ascribed  by  Joly  to  the  late 
eighteenth  or  early  nineteenth  century.  The  example  in  this  collection 
is  thought  to  be  contemporary  and,  like  the  former,  a  product  of  a  pupil 
or  close  follower  of  the  master  craftsman.  The  kakihan  is  the  same  as 
that  used  by  Somin  I.4  Somin  III  used  a  distinctly  different  written 
seal.    The  use  of  gold  and  silver  in  high  relief  reflects  the  influence  of 


*Kano  Tanyu  (1602-74)  was  the  most  celebrated  artist  of  his  school  after 
Motonobu,  first  painting  in  the  style  of  Sesshu,  and  later  becoming  a  master  of 
impressionism. 

aLE volution  de  la  garde  de  sabre  japonaise  {Bull.  Soc.  Franco-]  aponaise, 
Vol.  XXV,  p.  47)- 

*H.  Joly  and  K.  Tomita,  Japanese  Art  and  Handicraft,  p.  156. 
*Ci.  Op.  cit.,  Plate  cxxxvn,  No.  720. 


^|BSnY8FrJ.v.W5LL^J/ 


■*»^'*- 


The  Iwamoto  Family  107 

the  late  Nara  school.  Very  little  kebori  is  used,  almost  all  of  the 
design  being  in  relief  and  inlay.  The  pine-tree  seen  here  on  the  left  is 
absent  in  the  Naunton  specimen. 

Furukawa  Genshin,  who  learned  his  art  from  Somin,  worked  en- 
tirely in  the  style  of  chiselling  in  line.  Mitsusada,  on  the  contrary, 
preferred  relief,  as  a  typical  tsuba  by  him  (Plate  XXXV,  Fig.  3)  illus- 
trates. It  is  of  shibuichi  with  an  ishime  surface  and  decorated  solely 
with  three  well-modelled  horses  in  relief  of  black  shakudo.  Mitsusada 
was  a  pupil  of  Somin  I  and  lived  at  Tsu  in  Ise  Province,  as  he  states  on 
the  right  half  of  the  seppa-dai. 

A  pupil  of  Soyo,  Iwamoto  Chubei  by  name,  in  the  early  eighteenth 
century,  organized  his  own  atelier  and  worked  independently  with  his 
followers  in  Yedo.  Of  these  the  greatest  were  the  two  Ryokwan  and 
Konkwan  Shunshodo,  sometimes  known  as  Ryoun  or  Hakuhotei.  The 
last-mentioned  lived  from  1743  to  1801,  and  left  some  remarkable  por- 
trayals of  animals  and  figures,  which  have  been  extensively  imitated. 
Three  examples  from  his  chisel  may  be  studied  from  the  illustrations 
on  Plate  XXXVI.  The  kozuka  (Fig.  1)  is  of  shakudo  with  a  soft 
ishime  surface.  Upon  it  in  relief  of  copper  is  a  pipe  with  silver  bowl 
and  mouthpiece.  At  the  right  is  a  grasshopper  in  relief  of  gold.  The 
back  of  the  kozuka  is  of  gilded  metal,  as  is  so  often  the  case  with  like 
pieces  by  Somin.  The  two  menuki  (Figs.  2A  and  b)  are  beautiful  bits  of 
sculpture,  each  in  the  form  of  three  flying,  chirping  sparrows,  whose 
natural  coloring  has  been  reproduced  by  combining  copper,  shakudo, 
shibuichi,  and  gold.  One  is  signed  "Konkwan,"  the  other  is  inscribed 
with  the  kakihan  only. 

The  influence  of  the  Nara  and  Hamano  schools  is  reflected  in  the 
tsuba  of  shibuichi,  which  is  charming  in  design  and  admirable  in  execu- 
tion. The  full  signature  "Iwamoto  Konkwan"  with  kakihan  may  be 
studied  on  the  reverse  side,  which  is  reproduced  along  with  the  photo- 
graph of  the  obverse  (Plate  XXXVI,  Figs.  3  and  4).  The  design  is 
brought  out  in  low  relief  with  lines  of  fine  kebori  and  reliefs  of  gold 
and  copper.  Beneath  a  full  moon  is  a  fox  (kitsune)  standing  on  his 
hind  legs  on  the  bank  of  a  stream.  Having  put  rushes  on  his  head  in 
order  to  appear  as  a  woman,  he  gazes  contentedly  at  his  reflection  in 
the  water.  On  the  reverse  side  of  the  tsuba,  an  old  wrinkled  farmer 
with  face  of  copper  leans  on  a  staff  behind  bundles  of  rice.  The  nar- 
row, raised  path  of  the  rice-field  is  indicated  in  lines  of  katakiribori. 

Foxes  in  Japan  exercise  a  remarkable  influence  over  the  lower 
classes  even  to-day.     The  belief  in  the  magic  which  they  are  said  to 


io8  Japanese  Sword-Mounts 

practise  came  into  the  country  from  China  about  the  tenth  century,  ac- 
cording to  B.  Chamberlain1  and  L.  Hearn.2  Each  of  these  authors 
gives  astounding  accounts  of  the  demoniacal  powers  which  these  animals 
exercise  over  certain  people,  resulting  in  a  malady  called  fox  possession 
(kitsune-tsuki) ,  which,  according  to  these  and  other  stories,  causes  in- 
tense suffering.  The  greater  number  of  foxes  are  creatures  of  evil  dis- 
position, given  to  disguising  themselves  as  women,  priests,  or  animals 
other  than  their  own  kind,  and  thereby  tricking  their  victims  in  num- 
berless ways.  One  fox  which  is  an  exception  to  this  category  is  the  crea- 
ture known  as  the  messenger  of  Inari,  the  god  of  rice.  A  pair  of 
Inari  foxes  are  always  to  be  seen  at  the  entrance  of  the  temples  dedi- 
cated to  this  god,  who  is  a  more  modern  conception  of  the  deity  men- 
tioned in  the  Kojiki,  as  the  August  Spirit  of  Food  (Uka  no  mi  tama  no 
mikoto).  Not  only  does  the  Inari  fox  represent  the  protective  deity 
of  the  fields,  he  also  is  enabled  to  cure  minor  ailments,  such  as  colds  and 
coughs,  and  seems  to  be  a  special  guardian  of  the  courtesan  class  in 
certain  localities,  according  to  L.  Hearn.3 

The  same  writer  points  out  the  fact  that  the  retainer  is  now  wor- 
shipped more  generally  than  the  god.  "Originally  the  fox  was  sacred 
to  Inari  only,  as  the  tortoise  is  still  sacred  to  Kompira;  the  deer  to 
the  Great  Deity  of  Kasuga,  the  rat  to  Daikoku,  the  tai  fish  to  Ebisu, 
the  white  serpent  to  Benten,  or  the  centipede  to  Bishamon,  god  of 
battles.  But  in  the  course  of  centuries  the  fox  usurped  divinity.  And 
the  stone  images  of  him  are  not  the  only  outward  evidences  of  his  cult. 
At  the  rear  of  almost  every  Inari  temple  you  will  generally  find  in  the 
wall  of  the  shrine  building,  one  or  two  feet  above  the  ground,  an  aper- 
ture about  eight  inches  in  diameter  and  perfectly  circular.  It  is  often 
made  so  as  to  be  closed  at  will  by  a  sliding  plank.  This  circular  orifice 
is  a  fox  hole,  and  if  you  find  one  open  and  look  within,  you  will  prob- 
ably see  offerings  of  tofu  or  other  food  which  foxes  are  supposed  to  be 
fond  of.  You  will  also,  most  likely,  find  grains  of  rice  scattered  on 
some  little  projection  of  woodwork  below  or  near  the  hole,  or  placed  on 
the  edge  of  the  hole  itself ;  and  you  may  see  some  peasant  clap  his 
hands  before  the  hole,  utter  some  little  prayer,  and  swallow  a  grain  or 
two  of  that  rice,  in  the  belief  that  it  will  either  cure  or  prevent  sickness."4 

L.  Hearn  reproduces  a  most  interesting  letter  from  Hideyoshi  writ- 
ten to  Inari,  the  rice  god,  begging  for  the  release  of  one  of  his  servants, 

things  Japanese,  5th  ed.,  pp.  115-119. 
'Glimpses  of  Unfamiliar  Japan,  pp.  317-342. 
*Op.  cit.,  pp.  3I3-3I5- 
*Op.  cit.,  p.  316. 


The  Yanagawa  School  109 

who  has  been  bewitched  by  a  fox.  This  and  other  cited  incidents  show 
that  the  worship  of  Inari  by  the  military  class  was  quite  a  common  prac- 
tice. All  samurai  families  were  believed  by  the  peasants  to  be  the 
possessors  of  foxes;  and  Matsudaira,  the  daimyo  of  Izumo  Province, 
was  supposed  to  be  the  owner  of  a  great  number.  Stories  in  that 
province  are  still  commonly  told  regarding  the  power  of  foxes.  There 
are  to  be  seen  in  the  gardens  of  almost  every  old  clan  (shisoku)  resi- 
dence in  Matsue  a  small  shrine  of  Inari  Daimyojin  with  little  stone  foxes 
seated  before  it.1  The  appearance  of  the  fox  on  sword-fittings  is  not 
at  all  uncommon,  as  is  illustrated  on  other  specimens  on  succeeding  plates. 

Another  offshoot  from  the  Yokoya  school  is  that  of  the  Yanagawa 
which  was  founded  by  a  pupil  of  Soyo  I,  named  Masatsugu,  in  the  early 
eighteenth  century.  This  school  is  principally  known  through  the  work 
of  Naomasa  (1691-1757),  who  studied  under  Somin  and  used  the 
names  Soyen  and  Soryu.  Though  most  of  his  sword-fittings  are 
chiselled  in  relief,  he  also  is  known  to  have  used  katakiribori  most  ef- 
fectively. He  shows  a  strong  Yokoya  influence  in  his  choice  of  sub- 
jects, preferring  above  all  others  the  peony  and  kara-shishi.  These  de- 
signs are  generally  inlaid  in  a  medium  relief  of  gold  and  silver  on  a 
nanako  ground.  Naoharu,  a  pupil,  followed  him  very  closely  in  his 
methods  and  designs,  and  developed  a  technical  excellence  which  make 
his  tsuba  pieces  of  rare  beauty.  Adopted  as  a  son  by  Naomasa,  he  con- 
tinued to  work  in  Yedo,  though  he  concentrated  most  of  his  attention 
and  skill  on  fittings  for  Yoshida,  daimyo  of  the  province  of  Mikawa. 
He  often  signed  his  pieces  "Seiunsha  and  Onkokwan."  The  tsuba  (Plate 
XXXVII,  Fig.  1)  which  is  inscribed  "Yanagawa  Naoharu"  is  of  shaku- 
do  nanako  and  adorned  with  reliefs  of  copper,  silver,  and  gold,  depict- 
ing a  kara-shishi  beneath  a  waterfall  near  a  clump  of  peony  (botan). 

The  most  familiar  form  of  lion  in  Japanese  art  is  that  copied  from 
the  conventionalized  animal  introduced  into  China  with  Buddhism,  not 
the  older  and  more  natural  type  to  be  seen  on  objects  of  bronze  and 
jade  of  the  Han  dynasty.2  It  is  called  kara-shishi  ("Chinese  lion"), 
koma-inu  ("Korean  dog"),  or  dog  of  Fo  (Fo  meaning  "the  Buddha"). 
With  grinning  face,  a  head  surrounded  by  curling  locks  parted  in  the 
middle,  and  flame-like  tail  of  curls,  he  is  to  be  seen  before  Buddhist 
temples  as  guardian  and  symbol  of  divine  protection.  Very  often  he  is 
represented  with  the  peony,  an  emblem  of  regal  power  and  king  of 
the  plants.    This  association  is  known  as  botan  ni  kara-shishi.    Again, 

Hjlimpses  of  Unfamiliar  Japan,  p.  320. 

*Th'e  development  of  the  lion  design  is  worked  out  in  detail  by  B.  Laufer 
(Chinese  Pottery  of  the  Han  Dynasty,  pp.  236-247). 


no  Japanese  S word-Mounts 

the  lion  is  depicted  with  a  sacred  jewel  in  his  mouth,  the  jewel  being  a 
symbol  of  Buddha.  Sometimes  he  is  portrayed  near  a  waterfall  or 
throwing  his  progeny  over  a  rocky  cliff  to  test  the  vitality  of  the  young 
animals.  From  the  days  of  the  early  Goto  masters  the  kara-shishi  was 
a  favorite  subject  for  sword-fittings. 

The  fuchikashira  (Plate  XXXVII,  Fig.  2)  is  the  work  of  Nao- 
mitsu,  a  pupil  of  Naomasa,  who  lived  to  be  seventy-six  years  of  age, 
dying  in  1809  in  Yedo.  Preferring  to  work  in  relief,  he  was  evidently 
attracted  by  the  methods  of  the  Omori  artists  whose  sculptured  waves 
are  suggested  upon  each  of  these  small  pieces.  Over  the  ground,  which 
is  shakudo-nanako,  small  sanderling  (chidori)  fly  over  the  shining  claw- 
like crests  from  which  silver  flecks  of  foam  are  flung.  The  birds  are 
in  relief  of  gold  and  shibuichi,  and  are  finished  with  delicate  lines  of 
surface  carving. 

Seiansha  is  the  name  inscribed  upon  the  kashira  (Plate  XXXVII, 
Fig.  3)  of  shakudo,  which  is  associated  on  the  same  plate  with  these 
examples  of  the  Yanagawa  family.  This  name  suggests  that  which 
was  adopted  by  Naoharu,  though  it  is  written  with  distinctly  different 
characters.  What  the  true  name  of  the  artist  was  who  made  this  piece  is 
not  known,  but  it  is  my  opinion  that,  if  not  one  of  the  Yanagawa  them- 
selves, he  was  at  least  one  who  came  under  their  influence.  The  deco- 
ration may  have  a  familiar  aspect  to  students  of  sword-fittings  on 
account  of  its  remarkable  resemblance  to  the  design  on  the  well-known 
kozuka  by  Haruaki  Hogen,  the  famous  pupil  of  Yanagawa  Naoharu, 
whose  work  will  be  discussed  below.1  Each  of  these  objects  is  adorned 
with  a  most  skillful  bit  of  relief  in  different  colors  known  as  iroye, 
("colored  picture"),  a  combination  of  alloys  whose  varying  shades  and 
patina  are  developed  under  the  influence  of  a  pickling  solution  of 
boiling  acid.  On  this  kashira  the  main  portion  of  the  relief  has  been 
executed  in  repousse,  and  is  not  a  separate,  complete  piece  soldered  on 
to  the  ground. 

One  of  the  Shichifukujin, — Fukurokuju,  the  god  of  prosperity, 
happiness,  and  long  life,  as  his  name  reads, — has  been  chosen  as  the 
motive  of  the  decoration.  He  is  riding  on  the  emblem  of  longevity, 
the  crane  whose  red  crest  is  inlaid  in  copper.  The  god,  who  is  said  to 
be  a  re-incarnation  of  Lao-tse  and  again  the  spirit  of  the  south  pole  star, 
the  star  of  longevity,2  is  seated  with  one  hand  on  his  knee,  the  other 

1  For  a  reproduction  of  the  kozuka  referred  to,  cf .  H.  Joly,  Japanese  Sword 
Fittings  in  the  Naunton  Collection,  Plate  Lxvi,  No.  2180. 

3F.  Dickens,  Seven  Gods  of  Happiness  (Transactions  Asiatic  Soc.  Japan, 
Vol.  VIII,  p.  461). 


i 


gpiEBsincniaw^u-^ 


The  Sano  Family  hi 

grasping  a  spray  of  plum,  one  of  the  three  plants  denoting  long  life; 
the  others  being  the  pine  and  bamboo  which,  with  the  plum,  form  the 
shochikubai.  Fukurokuju  has  a  very  high  forehead  which  in  this  case 
is  partly  covered  by  a  golden  cloth.  His  wrinkled  brow  and  extremely 
long  eyebrows  and  beard  give  him  the  aspect  of  an  aged  man.  The 
tools  employed  to  inlay  in  gold  and  silver  the  brocade  pattern  on  the 
shakudo  robe,  must  have  been  of  needle-like  size  and  form,  for  the  out- 
line is  scarcely  the  width  of  a  hair. 

From  the  point  of  view  of  technique,  the  artists  of  the  Yanagawa 
family  were  unsurpassed.  The  excellence  of  their  work  continued  to 
be  upheld  by  a  group  which  was  founded  by  a  pupil  of  Yanagawa  Nao- 
nori,  named  Sano  Naoyoshi.  Working  in  Yedo,  mainly  for  the  daimyo 
Akimoto  of  Kozuke  Province,  in  the  second  half  of  the  eighteenth 
century,  he  produced  sword-fittings  both  in  iron  and  the  alloys,  using 
formal  decorations,  as  well  as  elaborate  ones,  sometimes  adorned  with 
reliefs  of  semi-precious  stones.  The  small  tsuba  (Plate  XXXVII,  Fig.  4) 
is  a  beautiful  example  of  his  handicraft.  The  field  is  of  shibuichi, 
which  has  been  subjected  to  a  chemical  treatment  that  has  produced  a 
soft  gray  color  with  a  silky  patina.  The  only  decoration  consists  of  a 
sprig  of  persimmon  (kaki)  inlaid  in  a  relief  of  dark  blue  shakudo  with 
leaves  lightened  by  golden  veinings.  The  fruit  itself  is  a  rounded 
carving  of  deep  pink  coral.  Consistent  with  this  simple  elegance,  the 
reverse  is  plain,  save  for  two  leaves  in  relief  of  shakudo. 

A  son,  named  Naoteru,  followed  the  first  artist  of  the  Sano  family  in 
the  making  of  fittings  of  refinement  and  quality.  On  Plate  XXXVIII, 
Figs.  1  and  2,  there  is  a  pair  of  tsuba  which  were  chiselled  by 
him,  and  which  were  likely  made  for  some  daimyo  to  wear  on  his 
dai-sho  on  dress  occasions.  They  are  of  shakudo  with  nanako  grounds 
accomplished  with  extreme  exactitude.  At  the  top  of  each  of  these 
tsuba,  inlaid  in  relief  of  various  metals,  are  the  most  popular  emblems  of 
longevity,  the  crane  and  the  tortoise.  As  in  China,  so  in  Japan,  the 
crane  (tsuru)  is  thought  to  live  to  a  fabulous  age  and  to  be  the 
winged  bearer  of  many  of  the  immortals.  One  sees  the  crane  con- 
stantly appearing  on  objects  of  daily  use,  such  as  lacquer,  pottery,  in 
kakemono,  and  most  significantly  in  the  ceremonial  arrangement  at 
New  Year's,  where  it  stands  with  the  tortoise  at  the  foot  of  the  shochiku- 
bai as  a  wish  for  a  long  life.  In  the  older  paintings  the  crane  is  colored 
white  with  black  plumage  on  back  and  tail,  and  with  a  crimson  patch 
upon  its  head.  Silver  has  been  utilized  on  this  tsuba  to  represent  the 
delicately  chased  feathers  on  the  tail  and  back  issuing  from  the  shibuichi 


ii2  Japanese  Sword-Mounts 

body.  A  bright  red  copper  inlay  on  the  head  completes  this  representa- 
tion which  is  not  purely  classical,  but  nevertheless  most  decorative. 

Equally  skillful  is  the  sculpturing  of  the  tortoise  (kame)  of  the 
mythological  species,  known  as  minogame  on  account  of  the  flowing 
hairy  tail  which  suggests  the  rain  coat  (mino)  of  the  peasant.  Accord- 
ing to  tradition,  this  tortoise  of  a  thousand  years  of  age  has  the  head 
of  a  dragon  with  scales  upon  its  neck  and  legs.  It  is  one  of  the  four 
supernatural  animals  of  Chinese  mythology,  being  associated  in  that 
country  with  the  tiger,  dragon,  and  phoenix.  As  an  emblem  of  longevity 
it  is  constantly  pictured  at  the  side  of  Fukurokuju  and  other  legendary 
patriarchs,  such  as  the  aged  couple  of  Takasago  whose  miniature  fig- 
ures typify  the  spirit  of  a  long  and  happy  married  life  in  the  wedding 
arrangement  called  shimadai. 

As  in  the  case  of  the  crane  on  the  larger  tsuba  the  back  of  the 
tortoise  is  to  be  seen  on  the  reverse  side  of  the  smaller  guard,  where 
the  flowing  tail  covers  the  entire  upper  portion.  This  long  mossy  ap- 
pendage is  realistically  inlaid  in  relief  of  shibuichi  of  a  greenish  gray 
tone;  the  shell  also  is  shibuichi  of  a  darker  shade  with  delicate  inlay 
of  gold  nunome-zogan  on  the  edge.  The  head  and  legs  are  covered  with 
scales  so  skillfully  carved  as  to  appear  overlapping  and  movable. 

Before  departing  from  the  history  of  the  Yanagawa  family,  one 
more  group  must  be  mentioned  which,  like  the  preceding  one,  was 
organized  by  a  Yanagawa  pupil.  Inagawa  Naokatsu  lived  from  1719 
to  1 76 1  and  worked  in  Yedo  along  with  the  greater  number  of  metal 
craftsmen  who  supplied  the  daimyo  with  sword-fittings  during  their 
annual  visits  to  the  capital.  Naokatsu  does  not  seem  to  have  had  a  large 
following,  Shigekatsu  and  Yoshikatsu  being  the  names  most  frequently 
met  with  among  his  pupils.  The  shibuichi  tsuba  (Plate  XXXVIII, 
Fig.  3)  is  signed  "Inagawa  Shigehisa," — a  name  unknown  in  the 
records,  but  evidently  that  borne  by  a  craftsman  of  considerable  skill. 
The  subject,  a  Ni-6,  has  been  met  with  before  (p.  65).  In  some  respects 
this  artist  seems  to  have  been  influenced  by  Joi,  for  he  has  sculptured  his 
figure  in  a  recessed  relief.  Details  of  the  hair  are  brought  out  in 
katakiribori  after  the  Yokoya  manner;  and  the  inlaid  reliefs,  such  as 
the  golden  eyeballs,  reflect  the  style  followed  by  many  of  the  eighteenth- 
century  artists  who  were  constantly  adopting  from  one  another  designs 
and  methods  of  decoration. 


■BHwnroFiLUfloisLisnABV 


-^v***.,^.. 


XIII.     THE  OMORI   AND   ISHIGURO   SCHOOLS 

As  the  demand  for  ornamental  sword-fittings  continued  to  increase 
from  the  middle  of  the  seventeenth  century  on,  there  were  constantly 
springing  into  being  new  groups  of  artists  who  branched  off  from  their 
parent  schools  and  formed  their  own  clientele.  About  the  year  1700, 
Omori  Shirobei,  a  fencing  master  in  the  province  of  Sagami,  began  to 
make  fittings  for  the  sword.  From  whom  he  learned  his  art,  we  do 
not  know,  but  his  son  Shigemitsu,  known  as  the  first  Omori  master, 
studied  with  Masayoshi  Ichirobei  and  Yasuchika  of  the  Nara  group. 
Dying  at  an  early  age  in  1726,  this  artist  left  a  limited  number  of 
tsuba  which,  for  the  most  part,  are  executed  in  the  Nara  style. 

Terumasa  (1704-72),  the  second  well-known  member  of  the  Omori 
school,  was  a  grand-nephew  of  Shigemitsu  and  studied  with  Yokoya 
Somin  and  Yanagawa  Naomasa.  The  reliefs  of  the  latter  apparently 
influenced  Terumasa  more  than  the  katakiribori  of  Somin.  He  is  not  a 
great  artist,  and  this  fact  likely  explains  his  choice  of  the  less  difficult 
method  of  decorating  his  products. 

The  greatest  artist  of  the  Omori  family  proves  to  be  Terumasa's 
nephew  and  adopted  son,  Teruhide  Ittosai  (1729-98),  whose  excelling 
skill  will  be  readily  recognized  if  one  compares  the  two  tsuba  of  Teru- 
hide with  the  guard  made  by  the  teacher  Terumasa  all  of  which  are 
reproduced  on  Plate  XXXIX.  The  older  master  produced  excellent 
nanako,  as  may  be  seen  on  this  shakudo  tsuba  (Fig.  1),  but  his  figures 
are  clumsy,  and  the  whole  composition  is  lacking  in  balance  and  grace. 
The  reliefs  are  quite  bizarre,  especially  the  large  patch  of  gilded  copper 
from  which  the  house  at  the  left  has  been  sculptured.  Though  the  cos- 
tumes on  the  figures  are  worked  out  in  detail  and  the  expressive  faces 
in  relief  of  copper  are  interesting  bits  of  portraiture,  the  tsuba  is  not  a 
successful  work  of  art. 

The  love  of  the  heroic  deeds  of  the  brave  men  of  China  and  Japan, 
and  the  universal  familiarity  of  the  samurai  with  these  stories,  explain 
their  frequent  appearance  on  the  mountings  of  the  weapon  dearest  to 
the  warrior's  heart.  One  of  the  most  popular  stories  of  Chinese  history 
is  told  by  Terumasa  on  this  guard. 

,  Kanshin  or  Han  Sin  was  the  grandson  of  a  prince  of  Han,  and  is 
known  as  one  of  the  three  heroes  of  Han,  being  usually  associated  with 
Ch'eng  Ping  and  Chang  Liang.  Through  family  reverses  he  was  reduced 
to  such  poverty  that  he  was  compelled  to  earn  his  living  by  fishing  in  the 

"3 


MnfBtSTTY  »F  U.i%tS  Hi 


.  -.^,<-^. 


The  Omori  School  115 

cutting  in  places  to  the  depth  of  2  mm.  The  entire  surface  of  this  tsuba 
of  shibuichi  is  covered  with  tumbling  crests,  overlapping  the  edges  and 
flinging  off  drops  of  golden  spray.  On  either  side  carefully  carved  re- 
liefs of  corals,  fishes,  and  squid  are  inlaid  in  various  metals.  On  the  ob- 
verse may  be  identified  the  "swell-fish"  (Tetrodon,  fugu  in  Japanese) 
with  shakudo  back  and  silver  belly;  the  plaice  (hirame)  is  in  silver, 
spotted  with  inlays  of  shakudo;  and  the  sea-bream  (tai),  the  king  of 
fishes  and  emblem  of  good  fortune,  is  chiselled  in  fine  detail  from  red- 
dish gold.  , 

Teruhide  had  numerous  pupils,  but  none  evolved  a  more  independ- 
ent style  than  Terutomo  or  Hidetomo,  who  studied  with  him  at  the  end 
of  the  eighteenth  century.  In  certain  instances  he  followed  his  master 
closely,  often  carving  from  shibuichi  a  flight  of  birds  above  breaking 
waves  in  much  the  same  style  as  his  teacher.  In  the  tsuba  (Plate  XL, 
Fig.  1)  he  manifests  an  unusual  genius  in  depicting  animals  in  a  bold 
and  sculpturesque  manner.  He  has  so  treated  the  iron  of  his  guard 
as  to  produce  a  patina  of  soft  chocolate  brown  color.  He  has  carved 
in  the  round  two  galloping  ponies  with  flowing  tails;  the  manes,  and 
eyes  inlaid  in  gold.  Here  and  there  over  the  bodies  he  has  chased  small 
patches  of  kebori  to  suggest  the  soft  hair  of  the  animal's  coat.  Bold, 
broad  cuttings  indicate  the  more  pronounced  lines  of  the  body,  while 
the  coarse  hair  of  tail  and  mane  are  chiselled  with  a  flowing  freedom. 

Quite  as  admirable  from  the  point  of  view  of  technique  is  the 
shakudo  fuchikashira  signed  by  the  same  artist  (Plate  XL,  Fig.  2).  Re- 
flecting the  more  formal  beauty  of  the  Goto  school,  Hidetomo  has  chosen 
the  plum  (ume)  with  its  silver  blossoms  shining  star-like  against  the 
blue  black  background  and  the  gnarled  trunk  of  dark  green  shibuichi. 
Mary  Fenollosa  has  made  an  eloquent  plea  that  we  give  to  the  ume 
its  full  portion  of  poetic  significance.1  Countless  classic  verses  of 
China  and  Japan,  as  well  as  the  more  modern  poems  on  surimono,  have 
told  us  that  the  plum  is  the  herald  of  the  new  year,  the  companion  of 
the  nightingale,  the  emblem  of  long  life  and  good  fortune,  as  it  bursts 
its  rose-tipped  buds  amid  the  driving  snowflakes.  While  the  pine  sym- 
bolizes longevity,  endurance,  loyalty,  and  masculine  strength,  the  plum 
typifies  the  feminine  virtues  of  sweetness  and  chastity. 

During  the  luxurious  days  of  peace  under  the  Tokugawa  shoguns, 
many  of  the  military  men  in  their  leisure  moments  indulged  in  the  pleas- 
ures of  artistic  production,  and  on  many  sword-fittings  of  excellent 
quality  we  find  the  names  of  certain  daimyd  and  samurai.     Teruhide 

^he  Ume  or  Plum  Flower   {Craftsman,  Vol.  IX,  1907,  pp.  405-421). 


n6  Japanese  Sword-Mounts 

had  as  a  pupil  a  retainer  of  the  daimyo  of  Mito,  by  name  Hisanori,  who 
was  a  renowned  dilettante,  living  in  the  second  half  of  the  eighteenth 
century  in  Yedo.  He  possessed  considerable  skill  and  artistic  feeling, 
as  is  evidenced  on  two  fuchikashira  of  shakudo  in  this  collection.  One 
which  is  reproduced  on  Plate  XL,  Fig.  3,  is  interesting  both  on  account 
of  its  technique  and  originality  of  design.  In  relief  of  gold,  shibuichi, 
and  a  little  copper,  there  stands  on  the  clamp  a  sculptured  peacock  (ku- 
jaku)  boldly  raising  his  crested  head  above  the  rim  of  the  clamp.  On 
the  head-piece  the  companion  peahen  is  inlaid  in  the  same  metals 
which  reproduce  to  a  considerable  degree  the  gorgeous  natural  colorings 
of  the  fowls.  Except  in  early  Buddhistic  sculpture  and  paintings,  where 
the  peacock  is  represented  as  the  heavenly  mount  of  Maya,  mother  of 
Buddha,  or  occasionally  in  later  work  accompanying  the  goddess  Benten, 
this  bird  has  no  particular  significance,  and  is  pictured  primarily  on 
account  of  its  adaptability  to  a  richness  of  decoration. 

Another  samurai  who  made  sword-fittings  was  Tomomasa,  the  re- 
tainer of  the  daimyo  of  Miyatsu  in  the  province  of  Tango.  He  worked 
under  Hidetomo  in  the  early  nineteenth  century.  The  tsuba  in  this 
collection  reflects  his  master's  preference  for  the  sterner  medium,  being 
as  it  is  an  iron  guard  simply  adorned  with  a  silver  heron  standing  on  a 
weather-worn  bridge-post. 

In  the  early  nineteenth  century  the  Omori  family  had  a  worthy  rep- 
resentative in  the  artist  Mitsutoki,  who  had  received  his  training  under 
Terumitsu,  a  pupil  of  Teruhide.  He  is  the  maker  of  the  shibuichi  tsuba 
(Plate  XL,  Fig.  4).  Using  a  pickling  process  to  produce  a  light  green 
patina,  he  has  effectively  inlaid  in  relief  of  shibuichi  and  gold,  tall  sprays 
of  the  bamboo  around  which  sparrows  in  relief  of  copper  are  flying. 

The  bamboo  (take  or  chiku) ,  being  evergreen,  is  used  in  conjunc- 
tion with  the  pine  and  plum  in  the  shochikubai,  where  it  is  emblematic 
of  longevity.  In  combination  with  the  pair  of  pine-trees  at  the  door 
(kado  matsu),  on  New  Year's  day,  it  has  this  same  significance.  It  is 
commonly  called  the  symbol  of  uprightness.  Through  one  of  those 
humorous  quirks  of  the  oriental  mind,  ever  loving  a  double  meaning, 
the  bamboo  has  come  to  stand  for  constancy  and  fidelity,  since  there  are 
two  Chinese  characters  each  of  which  is  pronounced  setsu;  one  meaning 
"constancy";  the  other,  the  "node"  or  "joint  of  the  bamboo."  The 
bamboo  pressed  to  earth  with  the  load  of  snow  is  also  significant  of 
constancy  and  endurance,  as  is  illustrated  by  the  well-known  proverb, 
"The  snow-covered  bamboo  bends,  but  never  breaks"  (take  ni  yuki 
ore  nashi).        , 


c 
o 


Bf  UlWS  U 


--«<•**••<-*- 


aKiasnt 


fBitfttUW" 


The  Ishiguro  School  117 

The  association  of  the  sparrow  and  the  bamboo  (take  m  susume), 
the  motive  of  the  decoration  on  Mitsutoki's  tsuba,  is  a  common  one,  and 
is  symbolic  of  gentleness  and  friendship,  since  the  bird  seeks  out  this 
plant  whose  graceful  branches  yield  to  its  weight. 

In  the  study  of  eighteenth  and  nineteenth-century  examples  of  sword- 
fittings  one  is  inclined  to  be  carried  away  by  his  delight  in  the  pictorial 
appeal  of  the  products  rather  than  by  the  artistry  evidenced  in  the  work- 
ing of  the  metals.  The  fittings  made  by  the  members  of  the  Ishiguro 
school,  which  was  founded  by  Masatsune  Togakushi  or  Jukokusai 
(1759-1828),  a  pupil  of  Kato  Naotsune,  of  the  Yanagawa  school,  are 
generally  such  decorative  pieces  that  the  technical  excellence  is  apt  to 
be  disregarded  or  rather  taken  for  granted,  as  one  concentrates  his  at- 
tention upon  the  meaning  of  the  design.  The  tsuba  and  other  orna- 
ments made  by  these  artists  are  typical  of  the  elegance  of  the  samurai 
of  the  early  nineteenth  century  who,  living  in  peace  and  luxury,  de- 
lighted in  the  products  of  these  masters  whose  work  has  been  compared 
quite  deservedly  with  that  of  the  world's  famous  jewelers.  Some  of 
the  bird  and  flower  decorations  for  which  they  showed  a  marked  pref- 
erence are  marvels  of  iroye  work. 

The  tsuba  of  shibuichi  by  Masayoshi  (Plate  XLI,  Fig.  1)  is  as 
vibrant  and  subtle  in  color  as  though  the  artist  has  been  working  with 
a  painter's  palette  and  pliant  brush  rather  than  with  the  stubborn  and 
forbidding  mediums  of  metal  and  chisel.  This  early  nineteenth-century 
master  who  studied  under  Naoyoshi  of  the  Sano  school  and  Masatsune  I 
of  the  Ishiguro  family,  has  reproduced  on  this  small  field,  with  techni- 
cal perfection,  a  picture  glowing  with  the  color  and  beauty  of  spring  in 
its  exuberance.  The  fully  blown  cherry-blossoms  are  sculptured  in 
silver  and  gold  with  tiny  golden  stamens.  The  leaves  of  green  shibuichi 
and  a  light  greenish  gold  are  notched  and  veined  with  a  fine  delicacy  of 
touch.  Clinging  to  the  branches  of  the  tree  and  hovering  over  the 
silver  peonies  are  birds  in  relief  of  gold  of  different  shades  with  breasts 
inlaid  in  copper.  The  "painting"  of  the  pheasants'  feathers  is  the  most 
skillful  bit  of  glyptic  art  on  this  wholly  admirable  piece.  The  crests 
and  necks  are  for  the  most  part  of  gold,  the  breasts  are  of  copper  flecked 
with  gold,  and  the  tail-feathers  are  of  shakudo  spotted  with  flatly  inlaid 
touches  of  copper.  The  reverse  is  quite  as  beautiful  as  the  obverse, 
being  adorned  with  a  graceful  arrangement  of  flowering  Hibiscus 
(fusoka)  and  Lespedeza  (hagi),  over  which  three  birds  and  a  butterfly 
are  winging. 

The  first  Masatsune  (1759- 1828),  unfortunately,  is  not  represented 


u8  Japanese  Sword-Mounts 

in  this  collection.  His  designs  were  generally  based  on  flower  and  bird 
motives,  though  he  sometimes  depicted  human  figures.  His  son  Masa- 
tsune  II,  known  also  as  Masamori  Moritsune  and  Jucho,  has  left  some 
excellent  examples  of  sculpturing,  oftentimes  using  the  lobster  (ebi)  as 
a  theme  of  decoration.  On  the  shakudo  fuchikashira  (Plate  XLI,  Fig.2) 
made  by  him,  in  high  relief  of  gold,  there  is  on  the  headpiece  a 
large  spiny  lobster  with  bead-like  eyes  of  shakudo.  In  this  case  it  is 
evidently  a  part  of  the  New  Year's  decoration,  more  of  which  appears 
on  the  accompanying  clamp.  On  account  of  its  bent  back,  the  ebi  has 
been  adopted  as  the  symbol  for  extreme  old  age,  and  therefore  makes 
an  appropriate  appearance  as  a  wish  for  long  life  on  the  small  stand 
(sambo)  which  holds  the  New  Year's  arrangement  to  be  seen  in  almost 
all  Japanese  houses  even  to-day  on  this  important  occasion.1  Occasion- 
ally the  lobster  is  attached  to  the  straw  rope  (shimenazva) ,  which  is 
stretched  before  the  entrance  at  the  front  of  the  house  to  remain  during 
the  celebration  of  this  festival.  Smaller  shimenawa  may  be  seen  over 
inner  doorways.  The  origin  of  this  custom  is  thought  to  reach  back  to 
the  mythological  days  recounted  in  the  Kojiki  when  Amaterasu,  the  Sun 
Goddess,  being  tempted  forth  from  the  cave  into  which  she  had  retired, 
was  prevented  from  returning  therein  by  the  deity  Futo  tama  no  mikoto, 
who  stretched  the  rope  made  of  twisted  straw  across  the  opening  of  the 
retreat.2  The  shimenawa  is  faithfully  portrayed  here  in  relief  of  gold, 
silver,  and  shibuichi.  It  is  always  made  of  straw  twisted  to  the  left 
(the  pure  or  fortunate  side)  with  pendant  straws  at  regular  intervals, 
but  of  differing  numbers  in  the  order,  three,  five,  seven,  three,  five, 
seven,  along  the  whole  length  of  the  strand.  Alternating  with  these 
pendants  are  the  paper  cuttings  known  as  gohei,  strips  of  paper  repre- 
senting offerings  of  cloth  in  ancient  times  to  the  gods.3  Beside  the 
gohei  there  are  leaves  of  the  fern  (Poly podium  dicotomon)  known  as 
moromoki  or  urajiro  in  Japan.  Since  the  fronds  spring  in  pairs  from 
the  stem,  this  plant  is  symbolic  of  happy  married  life  and  increase.  The 
small  oval  leaf  which  is  often  seen  attached  to  the  shimenawa  is  that  of 

*For  a  full  enumeration  and  explanation  of  the  objects  making  up  the  sambo 
arrangement,  cf.  L.  Hearn,  Glimpses  of  Unfamiliar  Japan,  Vol.  II,  p.  497. 

JB.  Chamberlain,  Kojiki,  p.  59.  At  Futami  on  the  Owari  Bay  there  are 
two  rocks  known  as  the  Myoto  seki  ("Wife  and  Husband  Rocks")  from  which 
is  suspended  a  shimenawa  said  by  some  to  represent  the  bond  of  conjugal  union, 
by  others  to  be  a  protection  against  the  entrance  of  the  Plague  God.  The  fact, 
however,  that  to  this  day  journeys  are  made  to  this  place  on  New  Year's 
morning  before  dawn  in  order  to  see  the  sun  rise  between  the  two  rocks,  thereby 
welcoming  Amaterasu's  return  to  the  earth,  points  to  a  distinct  survival  in  pure 
form  of  the  legend  referred  to  above,  which  in  turn  may  be  a  primitive  explana- 
tion of  a  solar  eclipse  that  occurred  in  the  early  days  of  Japan's  history. 

*Op.  cit.,  p.  57. 


The  Ishiguro  School  119 

the  Daphniphillum  macropodum,  known  as  yusuruha,  whose  old  leaves 
remain  after  the  young  ones  have  sprouted,  happily  adopted  in  this  con- 
nection as  the  emblem  of  a  long  united  family.1 

These  objects  referring  to  popular  festivals  commonly  appear  on  the 
sword-fittings  of  the  peaceful  Tokuwaga  period,  for  since  the  sword  was 
seldom  used  in  organized  fighting,  every  decorative  motive  was  utilized 
to  adorn  its  mounts  and  thereby  add  to  the  elegant  costume  worn  by  the 
daimyo  and  their  retainers. 

As  has  been  observed  before,  Buddhist  subjects  were  not  uncommon. 
A  beautifully  modelled  figure  of  one  of  the  most  popular  deities  in  Japan 
decorates  the  tsuba  (Plate  XLI,  Fig.  3),  which  is  the  work  of  another 
pupil  of  Masatsune  I.  Masahiro,  who  excelled  in  the  modelling  of  fig- 
ures, signed  his  fittings  with  the  following  adopted  names :  Gantoshi, 
Keiho,  Koryusha,  Kakujusai,  and  Katsutoshi.  The  two  last-mentioned 
are  incised  upon  this  guard  of  shibuichi  on  which  he  has  demonstrated 
the  high  quality  of  his  work.  As  though  stirring  the  molten  metal,  the 
artist  has  sculptured,  across  the  upper  portion  of  the  tsuba,  lightly  roll- 
ing clouds.  At  the  right,  seated  on  a  rock,  dotted  with  golden  bamboo 
sprouts,  is  the  divinity  whose  worship  in  Japan  almost  outrivals  that 
of  Amida.  The  Bodhisattva  Kwan-non  or  Kwan-yin,  in  Sanskrit  Avalo- 
kitegvara,  is  known  as  the  goddess  of  mercy,  being  represented  in  many 
forms,  eight  of  which  are  quite  common.2  In  this  representation  the 
deity  is  contemplating  a  leafless  branch  of  willow  set  up  in  a  holy- water 
bottle  inlaid  in  relief  of  gold  and  poised  on  a  rock  carved  from  shakudo, 
The  figure  which  is  full  of  grace  and  repose  stands  out  in  high  relief 
against  a  halo  inlaid  in  flecks  of  gold  imitating  nashiji  lacquer.  The 
calm  face  is  in  relief  of  silver,  the  flowing  hair,  almost  hidden  by  the 
golden  head  and  shoulder  drape,  is  sculptured  from  shakudo,  and  under 
the  magnifying  glass  proves  to  be  worked  out  in  fine  detail  with  kebori 
lines.  A  gold  necklace  with  three  pendants  adorns  the  bare  breast.  On 
the  reverse,  beneath  rolling  clouds,  a  waterfall  inlaid  in  silver  breaks  into 
curling  waves  over  a  rugged  rock  of  shakudo. 

Though  said  to  be  the  spiritual  son  of  Amida,  Kwan-non  is  generally 
represented  as  this  gentle  feminine  figure.  "This  incongruity  is  probably 
explained  by  the  theories  advanced  by  the  Chinese  that  Kwan-yin  is  of 
native  origin,  and  was  originally  the  daughter  of  a  king  of  the  Chou 

'Very  often  other  objects  of  equally  interesting  significance  are  added  to 
the  shimenaiva.  For  details,  see  L.  Hearn,  Glimpses  of  Unfamiliar  Japan, 
Vol.  II,  p.  496  and  F.  Brinkley,  Japan  and  China,  Vol.  VI,  p.  36. 

1 W.  Anderson,  Cat.  of  Japanese  and  Chinese  Paintings  in  the  British 
Museum,  pp.  64-65. 


120  Japanese  Sword-Mounts 

dynasty  (696  B.C.),  a  date  preceding  the  introduction  of  Buddhism  from 
India.  It  is  told  that  she  was  sentenced  to  death  by  her  father  for  re- 
fusing to  marry,  but  the  executioner's  sword  broke  without  harming  her. 
Her  spirit  went  to  Hell,  but  Hell  changed  to  Paradise,  and  the  king  of 
the  infernal  regions,  to  preserve  the  proprieties  of  his  realm,  sent  her 
back  to  life,  when  she  was  miraculously  transported  on  a  lotus  flower  to 
the  island  of  P'u-t'o.1 

A  second  product  from  the  chisel  of  Masahiro,  which  is  signed 
with  the  signature  "Kakujusai"  and  seal  inlaid  in  gold,  is  added  on 
Plate  XLII,  Figs.  1-2,  to  illustrate  further  this  artist's  mastery  of  tech- 
nique. It  may  be  also  of  interest  to  compare  his  treatment  of  the  familiar 
subject  of  Tadamori  and  the  priest  with  the  interpretation  presented  by 
Jowa  (Plate  XXV,  Fig.  3)  and  Somin  III  (Plate  XXXV,  Fig.  2).  The 
inlaid  figures  in  the  brocade,  and  the  slanting  lines  of  rain  in  gold  relief, 
flash  out  from  the  dark  background  of  shibuichi.  The  body  of  the  priest 
is  a  striking  piece  of  sculpture  from  copper.  His  robe  which  is  being 
torn  from  his  form  is  of  shakudo.  On  the  reverse  the  artist  has  inlaid 
in  high  relief  of  shakudo  a  beautiful  temple-lantern  standing  close  to  a 
gnarled  tree  with  leaves  of  three  different  shades  of  gold.2 

Four  of  the  most  prominent  Ishiguro  artists  in  the  middle  of  the 
nineteenth  century  were  Masaaki  I  and  II,  Masatsune  III,  and  Yoshi- 
nari  of  the  Ogawa  family.  The  shakudo  fuchikashira  (Plate  XLII, 
Fig.  3)  decorated  with  peonies  and  butterflies  in  gold  relief  is  the  work 
of  Masatsune  III.  The  tsuba  (Fig.  4)  on  the  same  plate  of  light 
gray  shibuichi  is  signed  "Yoshinari,  kakihan,  Seiryuken ;"  the  last  is  an 
adopted  name  hitherto  unnoted  in  the  records.  The  design,  which  is 
executed  wth  extreme  dexterity,  recalls  the  popular  festival  celebrated 
on  the  seventh  day  of  the  seventh  month  and  known  as  the  Tanabata 
Matsuri.  It  is  one  of  the  most  poetic  celebrations  in  the  Japanese 
calendar  and  symbolizes  the  meeting  of  the  Weaving  Maiden  and  the 
Oxherd,  spirits  of  a  star  in  Lyra  and  a  star  in  Aquila,  who  cross  the 
Milky  Way  or  River  of  Heaven  on  this  night  if  the  weather  is  fair. 
Borrowed  as  it  was  from  China,  there  are  several  versions  of  this 
romantic  story,  many  of  which  are  poetically  recounted  in  an  exhaustive 
study  of  the  subject  by  L.  Hearn.3    He  mentions  the  fact  that  "it  was 

'W.  Anderson,  Cat.  of  Japanese  and  Chinese  Paintings  in  the  British 
Museum,  p.  64.  This  Chou  date  is  purely  fictional.  The  adjustment  of  the 
heroine  of  this  Taoist  legend  with  the  Buddhist  deity  Avalokitecvara  is  one  of 
comparatively  recent  date. 

'Cf.  sketch  by  Hokusai  reproduced  by  L.  Gonse  (L'Art  japonaise,  Vol.  II, 
p.  309). 

"Romance  of  the  Milky  Way,  pp.  3-49. 


iffuaustK'-' 


****** 


The  Ishiguro  School  121 

not  until  the  Tokugawa  period  that  the  Tanabata  festival  became  a 
national  holiday,  and  the  popular  custom  of  attaching  tansaku  (longi- 
lateral  strips  of  finely  tinted  paper  for  the  writing  of  poems)  of  differ- 
ent colors  to  freshly  cut  bamboo,  in  celebration  of  the  occasion,  dates 
only  from  the  era  of  Bunsei  (1818)."1  The  ceremony  had  been  indulged 
in  with  great  elaboration  among  the  courtiers  since  a.d.  775;  some  of 
the  most  beautiful  of  the  poems  contained  in  the  Manyoshu  (ninth  cen- 
tury) being  those  which  treat  of  the  Tanabata  festival. 

After  the  popularization  of  this  celebration,  it  became  customary 
to  use  tansaku  of  five  colors :  blue,  red,  yellow,  green,  and  white,  the  five 
colors  said  to  be  seen  burning  in  the  two  stars  when  the  meeting  occurs. 
Over  the  little  peasant-hut  pictured  on  the  tsuba  by  Yoshinari,  one  can 
distinguish  these  shades  inlaid  in  relief  of  the  five  differently  colored 
metals, — shakudo,  copper,  gold,  shibuichi,  and  silver,  with  tiny  markings 
incised  upon  them,  and  suggestive  of  writing.  The  poem-papers  are 
attached  to  two  sprays  of  bamboo  with  leaves  of  gold,  which  have  been 
thrust  into  the  thatched  roof. 

*L.  Hearn,  Romance  of  the  Milky  Way,  p.  19. 


XIV.    THE  ICHINOMIYA  SCHOOL  AND  HOSONO 

MASAMORI  OF  KYOTO 

SUMIZOGAN,  GURIBORI,  MURAKAMI,  AND  ENAMELS 

In  1 719,  in  Kyoto,  was  born  one  of  the  finest  chasers  of  Japanese 
metal-work,  Nagatsune,  who  was  the  founder  of  the  Ichinomiya  School. 
At  first  apprenticed  to  a  metal  gilder,  he  later  became  a  pupil  of  Taka- 
naga  (Yasui)  and  Furukawa  Yoshinaga.  His  early  work  is  signed 
"Setsuzan."  Not  only  was  he  a  very  clever  tsuba  maker  and  producer  of 
the  smaller  sword-fittings,  but  he  also  was  a  painter,  having  studied 
under  Maruyama  Okyo  and  Ishida  Yiitei.1  He  evidently  did  not  expend 
all  of  his  skill  in  glyptic  art  on  sword-mounts,  for  G.  Jacoby,  H.  Joly, 
and  S.  Hara  all  mention  a  cover  which  he  made  for  a  brazier  (shuro) 
sent  by  the  daimyo  of  Tsuchima  to  the  king  of  Korea,  who  in  turn 
offered  it  to  K'ien-lung,  the  Chinese  emperor. 

Nagatsune,  whose  ancestry  can  be  traced  directly  back  to  Goto  Kojo, 
sometimes  used  the  name  Ganshoshi.  He  was  awarded  by  the  Kyoto 
court  with  the  title  Echizen  no  Daijo  ("feudal  chief  of  Echizen"),  which 
he  has  inscribed  on  two  pieces  in  this  collection.  Dying  in  1786,  he  left 
several  pupils,  of  only  mediocre  ability,  among  them  Nagayoshi,  his 
own  son,  who  signed  himself  Gikoshi  Kenryiishi ;  and  Tsunenao  Kiubei. 
Both  of  these  artists  lived  in  Kyoto  in  the  late  eighteenth  century.  A 
copper  tsuba  by  Tsunenao  in  this  collection.  He  has  sculptured  upon 
it,  in  low  relief,  an  ox  moving  toward  a  winding  stream  beneath  a  plum- 
tree  whose  blossoms  are  inlaid  in  silver  hirazogan  (see  Plate  LXI, 
Fig.  6  for  kakihan).  A  shakudo-nanako  tsuba  signed  "Nagayoshi 
Gikoshi"  is  decorated  with  a  cock,  hen  and  chickens  in  relief  of  copper, 
gold,  and  silver. 

Nagatsune  worked  both  in  line  and  in  relief.  His  skill  in  the  cut- 
ting of  katakiribori  is  thought  by  many  to  equal  that  of  Somin  I.  On 
Plate  XLIII  are  two  tsuba  both  of  which  are  of  shibuichi  decorated  with 
well-rounded  reliefs  of  various  metals.  The  first  (Fig.  1),  probably  an 
early  work  of  the  master,  is  signed  in  cursive  "Nagatsune,"  with  kaki- 
han.   The  entire  design  on  obverse  and  reverse  is  that  picture  of  family 

*Maruyama  Okyo  (1733-95),  the  founder  of  the  Shijo  naturalistic  school, 
studied  under  Ishida  Yiitei,  and  first  followed  the  rules  of  the  old  masters,  but 
soon  invented  a  new  style  in  which  he  painted  from  nature,  flowers,  fishes,  insects, 
and  animals,  as  well  as  landscape  and  figure  pieces.  He  won  great  favor  in  his 
day,  and  even  influenced  many  of  the  older  schools  which  heretofore  had  taken 
their  inspiration  from  the  ancients. 

122 


The  Ichinomiya  School  123 

life,  the  cock,  hen,  and  chicks,  so  often  painted  by  artists  of  the  Shijo 
school.  Black  shakudo  forms  the  carefully  sculptured  neck  and  tail- 
feathers  of  the  cock,  while  the  comb  is  of  copper,  and  the  breast  of 
shakudo  with  gold  inlay.  The  hen  and  chicks  are  carved  of  shakudo 
and  gold.  The  name  Minamoto  is  inscribed  on  the  other  tsuba  (Fig.  2), 
in  combination  with  Echizen  no  Dai  jo  Nagatsune.  S.  Hara  does  not 
mention  the  fact  that  this  artist  bore  the  noble  name  of  Minamoto,  but 
many  examples  in  well-known  collections  are  so  signed.  The  scene 
depicted  on  this  guard  is  that  of  a  fisherman  standing  in  a  stream  draw- 
ing in  his  net  which  is  of  shakudo.  Above,  over  golden  bamboo  sprays, 
fly  two  geese  inlaid  in  relief  of  the  dark  blue  metal,  with  bills  and  feet 
of  gold.  The  body  of  the  fisherman  is  carved  from  copper  with  the 
finest  of  kebori  lines  to  suggest  the  hair  on  the  legs.  Around  the  fisher- 
man's shaven  head  is  tied  a  cloth  of  silver.  He  wears  a  short  skirt  of 
straw  to  the  belt  of  which  is  tied  a  carefully  plaited  fishing-basket  in 
relief  of  gold. 

The  pair  of  menuki  on  Plate  XLIV,  Figs.  1  a-b,  signed  "Ichinomiya 
Echizen,"  again  illustrate  this  artist's  knowledge  of  nature  and  the  grace 
with  which  he  sculptured  particularly  certain  of  the  birds.  This  pair  of 
flying  geese  are  for  the  greater  part  carved  from  black  shakudo.  The 
breasts  are  inlaid  in  a  gray  shibuichi  with  black  markings.  The  bill, 
eyes,  feet,  and  wing-tips  are  of  gold. 

The  shibuichi  fuchikashira  (Plate  XLIV,  Fig.  2)  is  also  by  Naga- 
tsune Echizen  no  Daijo,  and  the  design  is  accomplished  in  a  very  low  re- 
lief with  delicate  inlays  of  shakudo,  gold,  and  silver.  On  the  clamp  under 
a  plaited  shelter  sits  Taikobo  or  Kioshiga  (Kiang  Tse-ya),  a  Chinese 
sage.  At  his  side  is  his  fishing  basket,  suspended  from  his  belt  is  a  small 
calabash.  On  the  head-piece  the  Chinese  emperor  Wen  Wang,  of  the 
twelfth  century  B.C.,  is  portrayed.  Taiboko  was  a  renowned  sage,  who 
late  in  life  was  sought  out  and  made  counsellor  to  Wen  Wang.  In  his 
early  years,  though  very  poor,  he  was  so  hostile  to  the  evil  ways  of 
Chou  Sin  that  he  would  accept  no  position  in  that  state,  but  retired  to 
the  principality  of  Si  Po,  the  Duke  of  Chou,  where  he  spent  much  time 
in  deep  contemplation  as  he  fished.  His  wife  grew  tired  of  their  poverty, 
and  one  day  on  discovering  that  he  fished  with  a  straight  iron  pin  in 
lieu  of  a  hook,  she  deserted  him  in  disgust.  Later  on  he  aided  Si  Po, 
afterwards  canonized  as  Wen  Wang,  in  war,  and  was  appointed  by  him 
counsellor.  He  became  very  wealthy,  whereupon  his  wife  returned  and 
begged  him  to  take  her  back.  In  answer  he  simply  poured  a  dishful 
of  water  upon  the  ground  and  bade  her  put  it  back  into  the  dish,  saying, 


124  Japanese  Sword-Mounts 

"It  is  no  more  possible  that  man  and  wife  if  once  divorced  can  come 
together  again,  than  that  the  spilt  water  be  replaced  in  the  dish."  Sad- 
dened and  ashamed,  the  wife  went  and  hanged  herself.  Concerning  the 
peculiar  form  of  his  fishing  hook,  J.  Bowes  remarks,  "Some  think  that 
this  may  suggest  that  he  lived  an  aimless  life,  but  another  interpretation 
is  that  wishing  to  govern  by  peaceful  means,  he  was  content  to  attain 
his  object  by  persuasion  rather  than  by  force."1  F.  W.  Mayers2  at- 
tributes his  successful  fishing  to  his  virtue,  which,  he  observes,  even 
the  fishes  acknowledged,  voluntarily  impaling  themselves  upon  the 
straight  piece  of  iron  which  he  used. 

The  reliefs  which  decorate  the  kozuka  (Plate  XLIV,  Fig.  3)  signed 
"Ganshoshi  Nagatsune,"  are  high  and  well-rounded.  They  are  inlaid 
upon  a  shakudo  nanako  plate  which  in  turn  is  inlaid  in  the  face  of  a 
kozuka  of  copper  gilded.  The  decorations  represent  the  paraphernalia 
used  in  the  Sarugaku  dance,  known  as  Okina  Sambaso.  The  mask  in 
relief  of  shakudo  with  carved  bosses  of  silver  above  the  eyebrows  repro- 
duces the  black  mask  (kokushiki) ,  with  white  tufts  of  an  old,  laughing, 
bewhiskered  man.  A  companion  mask  used  in  the  dance  is  white  with 
black  tufts  representing  another  old  man.  In  the  centre  of  the  plate  in 
relief  of  gold  is  the  dance  rattle,  a  cluster  of  bells  (susu)  with  a  handle 
and  tasseled  cord.  At  the  left,  in  relief  of  shakudo,  is  a  tall  cap  known 
as  eboshi,  with  tying  cords  and  band  of  gold.  There  is  often  painted  on 
this  hat  a  red  disk  representing  the  sun;  the  twelve  corded  divisions, 
distinguishable  here,  are  said  to  designate  the  months.  The  costume 
which  accompanies  these  accessories  in  the  performance  is  adorned  with 
one  or  all  of  the  following  emblems  of  longevity, — the  crane,  the  tortoise, 
and  the  pine  (see  Plate  LV,  Fig.  2).  The  origin  of  this  dance  appears 
to  have  been  a  religious  performance  which  took  place  at  Nara  in 
a.d.  807  to  stop  the  progress  of  some  fissures  suddenly  opened  in  the 
earth  belching  forth  fire  and  smoke.3  The  No  dance  known  as  Takigino 
("Fuel-burning  No")  is  presented  on  the  seventh  day  of  the  second 
month,  and  is  a  survival  of  the  early  Okina  Sambaso. 

Another  artist  of  the  middle  eighteenth  century,  who  did  not  migrate 
to  the  city  of  the  shogun,  but  remained  in  the  ancient  capital  Kyoto, 
where  he  was  born,  was  Masamori  of  the  Hosono  family.  Because  of 
his  individuality  and  skill,  his  sword-fittings  may  be  easily  recognized, 

1J.  Bowes,  Japanese  Pottery,  p.  494. 

2  Chinese  Reader's  Manual,  p.  81. 

"H.  Joly,  Legend  in  Japanese  Art,  p.  301.  For  further  particulars,  see  H. 
Joly,  Random  Notes  on  Dances,  Masks  and  Early  Forms  of  Theatre  in  Japan 
(Transactions  Japan  Soc,  Vol.  XI,  pp.  51-53). 


->***«**^-*. 


Hosono  Masamori  of  Kyoto  125 

decorated  as  they  usually  are  with  a  flat  inlay  combined  with  engraving, 
a  style  which  he  instituted  known  as  kebori-sogan.  He  had  many  fol- 
lowers, who,  however,  rarely  signed  their  own  names,  but  inscribed 
their  products  with  the  name  of  their  master.  The  subjects  they  pre- 
ferred represent  landscapes  charmingly  engraved,  or  river-scenes  in 
which  many  tiny  figures  with  costumes  carefully  inlaid  in  gold,  copper, 
or  shakudo,  are  shown  at  games  or  celebrations  or  drifting  in  crowded 
boats  on  calm  streams.  These  subjects  may  have  been  suggested  by  the 
early  masters  of  the  print  world,  but  are  more  likely  to  have  been  taken 
from  scroll  paintings  (makimono). 

On  Plate  XLIII  there  is  a  tsuba  of  shibuichi  which  is  typical  of  the 
work  of  Masamori  (Fig.  3).  On  both  sides  the  artist  has  made  use  of 
silver  and  gold  to  inlay  various  parts  of  the  objects  and  costumes  de- 
picted, thereby  breaking  up  the  complicated  design  and  producing  at  the 
same  time  a  brilliant  effect. 

The  scene  is  evidently  that  in  the  neighborhood  of  a  temple,  for  in 
the  immediate  foreground  a  portion  of  a  large  torii  and  the  crossed 
ridge-poles  of  a  temple-building  may  be  distinguished.  Pine  and  plum 
trees  gracefully  encompass  the  scene.  At  the  left  of  the  torii  a  vendor 
is  seated  behind  a  counter  whereon  are  tiny  bowls  and  two  small  Inari 
foxes,  one  in  silver  inlay,  giving  us  the  clue  that  this  is  a  temple  dedicated 
to  the  God  of  Rice.  Many  figures  are  coming  forth  from  the  temple ; 
peasants,  priests,  and  samurai,  as  well  as  the  bulky  form  of  a  wrestler, 
may  be  singled  out.  At  the  right  a  peasant  carrying  two  baskets  sus- 
pended on  a  carrying  pole  (ryogake)  approaches  a  group  seated  around 
a  table  on  which  are  laid  out  five  sticks  with  baked  bean-curd  (dengaku) , 
a  favorite  refreshment  of  the  peasant.  A  woman  with  a  stiff  fan 
(uchiwa)  is  fanning  the  flames  over  which  the  dengaku  is  roasted.  A 
sake  tub  stands  behind  her.  Beyond  and  over  a  hill  four  men  play  at 
target  shooting  with  bows  which  are  inlaid  in  silver.  Another  group  in 
the  distance  motions  to  unseen  friends  to  join  them.  Under  the  magni- 
fying glass  each  little  face  takes  on  a  distinct  personality,  and  the  delicate 
outlines  prove  to  be  cut  with  unerring  accuracy.  The  guard  is  signed 
"Masamori  Hosono  Sozayemon,"  and  is  believed,  on  account  of  its 
excellence  and  beauty,  to  be  a  true  work  from  Masamori's  own  hand.1 

A  most  effective  form  of  inlay  is  occasionally  seen  in  Ishiguro  and 
Sano  work,  but  more  frequently  is  met  with  on  fittings  made  by  the 
Tsuji  school,  a  group  whose  founder  and  protagonist  was  Rinsendo 
Mitsumasa  (1721-77)  of  the  province  of  Omi.     He  and  his  followers, 

1  This  tsuba  was  at  one  time  in  the  collection  of  Alfred  Beit  of  London. 


126  Japanese  Sword-Mounts 

particularly  Yoshinori,  are  noted  for  their  skill  in  the  type  of  decoration 
known  as  sumi-zogan  ("ink-inlay"),  sometimes  erroneously  called  by  the 
name  togashi-zogan,  which  is  distinctly  different,  being  as  it  is  an  imita- 
tion of  nashiji  lacquer.  Generally  accomplished  with  dark  metal  inlaid 
against  a  lighter  medium,  sumi-zogan  has  actually  the  effect  of  ink  paint- 
ing. The  piece  to  be  inlaid  is  fully  chiselled  out  of  an  independent 
block  of  metal  with  slanting  sides,  broader  at  the  base  than  the  top.  "The 
object  which  is  to  receive  the  decoration  is  then  channelled  in  dimensions 
corresponding  with  those  of  the  design  block,  and  the  latter  having  been 
fixed  in  the  channel,  the  surface  is  ground  and  polished  until  absolute 
intimacy  seems  to  be  obtained  between  the  inlaid  design  and  the  metal 
forming  its  field.1 

A  most  effective  design  which  is  often  brought  out  by  this  process  is 
to  be  seen  on  the  kozuka  (Plate  XLIV,  Fig.  4)  by  Yoshinori.  This 
specimen  is  one  of  a  full  set  of  sword-mounts  each  of  which  is  adorned 
with  a  similar  motive.  The  foundation  metal  is  gray  shibuichi.  Against 
a  silver  moon  is  silhouetted  in  shakudo  inlay  a  black  crow,  which  clings  to 
a  branch  cut  in  kebori.  Below  in  the  finest  of  lines  of  silver  hirazogan, 
there  is  suggested  a  curving  stream,  upon  whose  waters  the  moonlight 
is  reflected. 

Basho,  the  great  seventeenth-century  poet  who  specialized  in  the 
epigram,  has  left  a  charming  triplet  full  of  suggestive  atmosphere,  as  all 
truly  Japanese  poems  are,  and  one  which  may  have  served  for  the  inspi- 
ration of  Yoshinori's  design. 

Kare-eda  ni 

Karasu  no  tomari-keri  The  end  of  autumn  and  some  rooks 

Aki  no  kure.  Are  perched  upon  a  withered  branch.2 

On  some  rare  specimens,  artists,  particularly  those  of  the  Sano 
school,  by  whom  the  process  was  invented,  have  superimposed  upon  a 
sumi-zogan  design  a  nanako  treatment  which  gives  the  effect  of  a  silken 
brocade.  Two  such  pieces  are  to  be  seen  in  the  collection  of  G.  Oeder 
(Nos.  1337  and  1355).  A  shakudo  tsuba  by  Ishiguro  Masahide  is  in- 
laid with  a  silver  crescent  moon.  The  other  piece  is  a  fuchikashira  by 
Sano  Saneyoshi. 

From  the  point  of  view  of  technical  skill,  there  is  nothing  to  be  seen 
on  Japanese  sword-fittings  which  exceeds  the  welding  and  carving  that  is 
together  known  as  guribori.  This  particular  decoration  is  an  imitation  of 
the  carved  guri  (tsui-shiu)  lacquer  of  China  in  which  layers  of  differ- 
ently colored  lac  are  exposed  by  carving.    In  guribori  the  cutting  is  done 

1F.  Brinkley,  Japan  and  China,  Vol.  VII,  p.  245. 
2B.  Chamberlain,  Japanese  Poetry,  p.  190. 


FIELD  MUSEUM  OF  NATURAL  HISTORY. 


ANTHROPOLOGY,   VOL.   XVI,    PL.   XLIV. 


\  0  * 


1-3,    MOUNTS  BY  ICHINOMIYA  NAGATSUNE  (p.  123).     4,   KOZUKA  BY  TSUJI  YOSHINORI  (p.  126). 


mm\t 


Guribori,  Murakami  and  Enamels  127 

in  channels  of  narrowing  width.  On  Plate  XLV  there  is  an  excellent 
example  of  guribori  in  the  nineteenth-century  tsuba  with  scalloped 
edge  (Fig.  1).  It  is  composed  of  fifteen  thin,  alternating  layers  of 
shakudo  and  copper  so  skillfully  welded  together  that,  while  there  is 
no  apparent  sign  of  soldering,  neither  is  there  any  fusion  to  be  detected, 
the  distinct  lines  of  opposed  colors  being  clearly  preserved.  On  either 
side  there  are  curving  channels  with  sloping  sides  cut  through  seven  of 
the  layers,  thus  exposing  the  red  and  black  metals  in  stripes  and  reserv- 
ing one  layer  of  shakudo  between  the  designs  on  either  side  of  the  tsuba. 
This  tsuba  is  unsigned,  but  similar  pieces  were  made  by  several  of  the 
Takahashi  family  and  some  of  the  members  of  the  Shoami  and  ltd 
schools. 

In  the  eighteenth  century  there  lived  in  Yedo  a  certain  stirrup-maker, 
named  Tochiku  of  the  family  Murakami.  He  also  is  known  by  the  name 
Nakanori.  He  is  among  the  first,  if  not  the  originator  of  the  style  of 
applying  mother-of-pearl  to  his  sword-fittings  in  order  to  bring  out 
certain  parts  of  his  decoration,  such  as  the  wings  of  insects  or  the 
feathers  of  birds,  particularly  the  peacock  and  pheasant.  In  this  col- 
lection there  is  an  interesting  tsuba  of  iron  bounded  by  a  shakudo  rim 
whose  decoration  doubtless  was  influenced  by  Jochiku  (Plate  XLV, 
Fig.  2).  It  is  unsigned.  In  relief  of  silver  there  is  a  broadly  sculptured, 
scaled  dragon  moving  through  water  in  pursuit  of  the  flaming  jewel 
(tcana),  the  symbol  of  perfection.  The  gem  and  the  imbricated  waves 
are  inlaid  in  shell,  the  tama  in  a  flashing  yellowish-red  bit,  the  water 
shining  in  the  blue  and  green  lights  of  the  shell  of  the  abalone  (Haliotis, 
in  Japanese  awabi).  , 

There  is  associated  on  the  same  plate  with  the  foregoing  examples 
of  rather  uncommon  and  ornate  decoration,  a  tsuba  which  is  ornamented 
with  reliefs  of  cloisonne  enamel,  known  as  shippo  (see  p.  39).  The 
introduction  into  Japan  of  this  method  of  decorating  works  of  art  has 
been  by  many  writers  ascribed  to  Korean  artizans  of  the  sixteenth 
century.  Other  authorities,  particularly  Omura  Seigai,  compiler  of  the 
"Record  of  the  Imperial  Treasury,  Shoshoin"  (p.  22)  thinks  it  not 
improbable  that  the  art  of  enameling  may  have  been  practised  in  Japan 
in  ancient  days,  which  in  this  case  would  mean  before  the  ninth  century. 
One  is  inclined  to  leave  the  matter  of  its  origin  open  until  further  in- 
vestigation, and  accredit  the  revival  of  the  art  in  the  sixteenth  and 
seventeenth  centuries  to  the  influence  of  Chinese,  and  possibly  European 
traders  who  landed  at  the  port  of  Nagasaki.  It  is  that  re-appearance  of 
enamel  work  which  is  of  interest  in  this  study,  for  it  is  believed  that  the 


128  Japanese  Sword-Mounts 

first  sword-fittings  which  were  adorned  with  shippo  were  made  by  mem- 
bers of  the  Hirata  family  whose  founder  Ddnin  is  said  to  have  been  at 
work  in  Kyoto  in  the  period  Keicho  (1596-1614).  "Ddnin  was  sum- 
moned in  161 1  by  the  shogun  to  his  country  residence  at  Shizuoka.  He 
received  the  appointment  of  chaser  in  metals  and  shippo  worker,  a 
dwelling  was  allotted  to  him,  with  rations  of  rice,  and  many  gifts  were 
made  to  him.  Here  he  followed  his  employment  until  1616  when  he 
was  called  to  Yedo.  Thenceforward  he  and  his  descendants  served  the 
court  until  the  downfall  of  the  shogunate  in  1868."1 

Ddnin,  sometimes  known  as  Hikoshiro  and  later  as  Niudo,  seldom 
signed  his  work.  In  fact  the  examples  made  by  the  first  seven  genera- 
tions of  the  family  are  only  occasionally  signed,  and  therefore  it  is 
difficult  to  characterize  with  assurance  their  work ;  a  signature  is  never 
to  be  taken  as  a  conclusive  proof,  that  being  the  first  and  least  difficult 
part  to  forge  in  a  work  of  art.  After  examining  certain  specimens  ad- 
judged to  be  authentic,  J.  Bowes2  has  reached  the  following  conclu- 
sions : — 

"In  Hirata  work  the  cloisons  are  of  gold,  and  the  enamels  are  both 
translucent  and  opaque  with  their  surfaces  ground  and  unground, 
whereas  in  the  later  pieces  the  cloisons  are  of  brass  and  the  pastes 
always  opaque  and  ground.  The  latter  are  upon  copper  foundations, 
whilst  the  Hirata  employed  a  variety  of  metals,  iron,  shakud5,  shibuichi, 
bronze,  and  occasionally  silver  and  lacquer.  In  later  work  the  surfaces 
are  completely  covered  with  cloisons  and  enamel  pastes;  the  Hirata 
craftsmen,  on  the  other  hand,  merely  ornamented  the  grounds  of  the 
objects  treated  with  small  subjects  and  devices  of  enamel  work,  such 
as  takaramono,  rosettes,  blossoms,  fan-shaped  fields,  birds,  and  flowers. 
The  designs  are  outlined  in  gold  ribbons  or  wire  fixed  to  the  metal 
base,  the  various  parts  of  the  subject  being  filled  with  enamel  pastes 
which  are  afterward  vitrified,  and  the  completed  works  are  then  inserted 
in  cavities  prepared  for  their  reception  in  the  article  decorated.  The 
two  methods  of  enamelling  are  often  found  associated  on  a  piece,  cloi- 
sonne (enamelling  on  a  metal  base  confined  within  ribbon-like  walls) 
and  champ-leve  (enamelling  sunk  into  a  hollo  wed-out  patch  in  the  object 
decorated  with  pastes  separated  by  cloisons)." 

One  other  form  of  decoration  remains  for  notice :  the  small  figures 
executed  in  gold  wire  either  incrusted  or  inlaid,  generally  in  spiral  forms 
or  dots  without  the  addition  of  any  enamel  paste.     These  constantly 

1J.  Bowes,  Notes  on  Shipp5,  p.  80. 
'Op.  cit.,  p.  82. 


MBOT.SFUOas  i.;...'-:' 


'**? 


•^(.rtM^ 


Enamels  by  the  Hirata  129 

appear  on  Hirata  work.  The  Hirata  ornamented  many  sword-guards 
made  by  other  makers  than  themselves.  The  name  that  may  be  inscribed 
on  such  tsuba  is  more  likely  to  be  the  name  of  the  maker  of  the  guard 
rather  than  that  of  the  enameller.  Such  is  thought  to  be  the  case  with 
the  iron  tsuba  on  Plate  XLV,  Fig.  3,  which  is  signed  "Yoshiaki,"  a  name 
borne  by  two  craftsmen  listed  by  S.  Hara,  one  of  the  Shimizu  family, 
the  other  of  the  Ozaka  family,  both  early  nineteenth-century  workers. 
The  iris  (shobu)  at  the  left  is  in  high  relief  of  gilded  copper  with  leaves 
of  dark  blue  shakudo.  Above,  in  cloisonne  with  gold  threads  and  enam- 
els of  green,  blue,  white,  and  lilac,  are  a  butterfly  and  a  bee.  These 
little  insects  are  excellently  made,  and  resemble  very  closely  two  similar 
reliefs  on  a  kozuka,1  which  is  signed  "Narisuke,"  the  name  of  a  nine- 
teenth-century descendant  of  Donin. 

The  genealogy  of  the  Hirata  family  of  Mino  Province  is  carefully 
worked  out,  and  their  signatures  reproduced  by  J.  Bowes,  who  illus- 
trates many  beautiful  examples  of  their  work.2  The  climax  of  their  art 
was  reached  in  the  early  nineteenth  century  by  Harunari  and  Narimasa, 
both  shippo  workers  to  the  shoguns.  Their  sword-fittings  are  of  exqui- 
site workmanship,  made  of  a  variety  of  metals  and  enriched  with  forms 
in  opaque  enamels  and  gold-wire  spirals.  The  larger  objects  of  metal 
by  these  artists,  such  as  braziers,  perfume  burners,  and  incense  boxes 
(kogo),  are  among  the  important  examples  of  Japanese  metal  work. 

*J.  Bowes,  Notes  on  Shippo,  Plate  a,  No.  6. 

"Another  Hirata  family  lived  in  the  province  of  Awa,  but  the  members  are 
not  known  to  have  made  shippo. 


XV.    THE  SCHOOLS  OF  MITO.    THE  TAMAGAWA  FAMILY 

,  From  the  early  eighteenth  on  through  the  nineteenth  century,  there 
lived  in  the  city  of  Mito  in  Hitachi  Province  many  craftsmen  skilled  in 
the  working  of  metals,  who  produced  fittings  for  the  sword.  Employing 
both  iron  and  alloys,  they  worked  in  various  styles,  generally  in  relief. 
Not  only  did  they  leave  examples  illustrative  of  their  own  originality, 
they  also  are  known  to  have  made  remarkable  copies  after  the  Nara  and 
Yokoya  models.  While  there  are  several  independent  artists  who  signed 
their  work  "made  in  Mito,"  the  majority  of  the  craftsmen  of  this  city 
belonged  to  one  of  the  four  following  groups  which  had  settled  there 
at  various  times :  the  Sekijoken,  the  Koami,  the  Hitotsuyanagi  or 
Ichiryu,  and  the  Yegawa  families. 

The  Sekijoken  school  was  founded  by  Oyama  Taizan  Motozane 
(1739-1829),  a  pupil  of  Motonori  of  the  Yokoya  family.  In  spite  of 
the  fact  that  he  was  acquainted  with  the  katakiribori  of  Somin  and  his 
followers,  he  and  his  pupils  seldom  worked  in  line  engraving,  but 
markedly  show  forth  the  influence  of  the  leaders  of  the  Nara  school. 
Indeed,  so  completely  did  they  understand  the  technique  and  spirit  of 
Joi  and  Toshinaga  that  several  of  their  fittings  have  been  attributed  to 
those  earlier  masters  themselves.  A  great  number  of  artists  flocked  to 
the  studio  of  Motozane  to  learn  the  craft.  Motozane  II,  Motosada,  and 
Motonaga  are  among  the  pupils,  many  of  whom  bear  names  beginning 
with  the  same  character  as  that  of  their  revered  master. 

One  of  the  outstanding  pupils  is  Motoharu  of  the  Fujita  family  who 
lived  in  the  early  years  of  the  nineteenth  century.  Brown  iron  has  been 
chosen  for  the  circular  tsuba  bearing  his  name  (Plate  XLVI,  Fig.  1). 
Thereon  he  has  sculptured  within  a  narrow  rim  in  marubori  zogan  an 
interesting  delineation  of  the  Chinese  legend  of  Hwang  Shi  Kung,  the 
Yellow  Stone  Elder,  and  Chang  Liang,  chief  counsellor  of  the  founder 
of  the  Han  dynasty,  known  as  Chorio  in  Japan.  One  day  the  latter  met 
an  aged  man,  by  name  Kosekiko  (Hwang  Shi  Kung),  who  had  dropped 
his  shoe  into  the  river.  Chorio  restored  the  shoe  to  Kosekiko,  who  bade 
his  younger  companion  meet  him  five  days  later  at  a  certain  place. 
"After  thrice  postponing  the  promised  revelation  because  each  time 
Chang  had  failed  to  arrive  respectfully  at  an  earlier  hour  than  his 
strange  acquaintance,  the  old  man,  satisfied  at  length,  drew  from  his 

130 


The  Schools  of  Mito  131 

robe  a  volume  which  he  bestowed  upon  him  with  the  words,  'He  who 
studies  this  book  shall  become  a  king's  preceptor!'  He  added  that  in 
thirteen  years'  time  Chang  Liang  would  meet  him  in  the  shape  of  a  yel- 
low stone  at  Ku  Cheng.  This  prediction  was  verified  by  the  finding  of 
a  yellow  stone  at  the  time  and  place,  as  prophesied."1 

Motoharu  has  lightened  the  dark  iron  of  his  tsuba  with  inlays  of 
other  metals,  modelling  the  faces  in  silver  and  carving  the  horse  trap- 
pings, the  tongue  and  flaming  appendages  of  the  dragon  in  gold.  In 
technique  this  tsuba  is  suggestive  of  the  work  of  the  Hikone  group, 
with  the  additional  freedom  and  vigor  of  carving  which  had  naturally 
developed  in  a  century  and  a  half . 

Another  illustrious  disciple  of  Motozane  I  was  Hisanaga  of  the 
Takase  family,  also  known  as  Fiirytiken,  who  lived  at  the  end  of  the 
eighteenth  century.  He  is  the  maker  of  a  small  shibuichi  tsuba  in  this 
collection,  a  guard  of  irregular  form  ornamented  on  both  sides  with  a 
landscape  in  Chinese  style.  The  tsuba  of  shakudo  (Plate  XLVI,  Fig.  2) 
is  likewise  an  example  of  his  excellent  chiselling.  It  is  adorned  with 
a  representation  of  Narihira  on  a  fully  caparisoned  horse,  standing  with 
his  groom  in  the  flowing  stream  of  Tamagawa.  On  the  edges  of  the 
shore  grow  low  cherry-trees  with  full  blooms  carved  in  silver  and  gold 
relief. 

Narihira,  one  of  the  Six  Poetical  Geniuses  (Rokkasen),  is  a  char- 
acter well-beloved  and  intimately  known,  especially  from  the  Ise  Mono- 
gatari  (tenth  century),  one  of  the  famous  narratives  in  Japanese  litera- 
ture, which  relates  the  adventures  of  this  young  nobleman,  who  finally 
was  banished  to  Azuma  on  account  of  an  intrigue  with  the  empress.  He 
is  generally  pictured  as  gazing  up  toward  Mt.  Fuji,  or  standing  on  the 
banks  of  the  Tamagawa  River,  or  looking  upon  the  floating  maple-leaves 
upon  Tatsutagawa. 

Koami  of  the  Kikuchi  family  had  studied  the  art  of  making  sword- 
fittings  with  Goto  Renjo  at  the  end  of  the  seventeenth  century.  He  was 
the  founder  of  the  Koami  family  whose  members  worked  in  Mito,  advo- 
cating the  style  of  the  Goto  artists.  His  most  renowned  pupil  was 
Yatabe  Michinaga  or  Tsuju,  whose  name  was  derived  from  the  two 
Goto  artists,  Tsiijo  and  Jujo.  His  early  works  reflect  the  Goto  influence, 
but  it  is  apparent  that  the  charm  of  the  Nara  fittings  influenced  him  as 
well,  and  that  he  later  developed  a  style  quite  his  own.  While  he  often 
worked  in  the  alloys,  most  of  his  fittings  are  of  iron,  as  is  the  case  of  the 
tsuba  on  Plate  XLVI,  Fig.  3.    This  guard  is  unusually  heavy,  the  edge 

*F.  W.  Mayers,  Chinese  Reader's  Manual,  p.  8. 


132  Japanese  Sword-Mounts 

being  covered  with  high  reliefs  of  iron,  copper,  and  gold  representing 
the  emblems  of  longevity:  the  crane,  the  tortoise,  the  pine,  and  the 
bamboo.  At  the  top,  rolling  clouds  are  sculptured ;  at  the  base,  breaking 
waves  with  flecks  of  foam  touched  in  gold  nunome  are  broadly  carved. 
The  signature  is  inlaid  in  gold  on  the  obverse.  , 

The  Hitotsuyanagi  or  Ichiryu  school  was  founded  in  the  middle  of 
the  eighteenth  century  by  a  member  of  the  Hirano  family,  by  name 
Tomoyoshi,  a  pupil  of  Shinozaki  Yasuhira,  who  in  turn  had  been  trained 
by  Nara  Yasuchika  I.  There  is  little  of  the  Nara  style,  however,  to  be 
detected  in  the  work  of  the  Hitotsuyanagi.  For  subjects  they  preferred 
dragons,  birds,  and  kara-shishi  ("Chinese  lions"),  the  latter  being  pre- 
sented in  a  style  at  times  strongly  reflecting  the  art  of  Yanagawa  Nao- 
masa.  There  were  four  skillful  artists  in  this  school,  by  the  name  of 
Tomoyoshi,  all  of  whom,  save  Tomoyoshi  III,  used  the  names  Riosuke 
and  Izayemon.  The  tsuba  on  Plate  XLVII,  Fig.  1,  is  signed  "Hitotsu- 
yanagi Tomoyoshi."  It  is  carved  after  the  manner  of  one  of  the  first 
two  of  these  masters,  who  generally  worked  in  iron,  as  in  this  case. 
The  larger  portion  of  the  metal  has  been  chiselled  away,  leaving  a  force- 
ful carving  of  a  scaled  dragon  confined  within  a  narrow  rim  inlaid  in 
a  key-pattern  in  silver.  This  design  is  often  met  with.  A  similar  tsuba, 
likewise  by  Hitotsuyanagi  Tomoyoshi,  is  illustrated  by  L.  Gonse.1  A 
second  tsuba  in  the  collection  of  Field  Museum  of  Natural  History  bears 
the  same  name,  but  is  obviously  the  work  of  Tomoyoshi  III  or  IV,  who 
usually  employed  the  alloys  with  effect.  The  tsuba  referred  to  is  made 
of  two  metals,  silver  and  shakudo.  They  are  so  combined  that  one 
half  of  the  field  (divided  diagonally)  is  dark,  while  the  other  is  light. 
The  subject  of  decoration  is  the  tiger,  the  king  of  beasts,  near  a  waterfall 
beneath  rain  and  wind-driven  clouds. 

Tomoaki,  a  pupil  of  Tomoyoshi  III,  and  Tomotsugu,  who  worked 
under  the  direction  of  Tomoyoshi  IV,  are  both  represented  by  tsuba  in 
this  collection.  Each  of  these  artists,  in  the  choice  of  his  subjects  of 
decoration  and  in  his  manipulation  of  the  metals  used,  was  influenced  by 
the  masters  of  the  Nara  school,  selecting  for  the  most  part  historical 
personages  or  birds  and  animals. 

The  fourth  noted  family  of  Mito,  that  known  as  the  Yegawa,  was 
an  offshoot  of  the  Hitotsuyanagi,  having  been  founded  by  Toshimasa, 
chiseller  to  the  daimyo  of  Kuruma  and  pupil  of  Tomomichi,  the  second 
son  of  Tomoyoshi  I.     In  the  majority  of  cases,  the  fittings  made  by 

'L'Art  japonaise,  Vol.  II,  Plate  xvi,  No.  7. 


gWBSIttC 


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WBwryoriiuMii 


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The  Schools  of  Mito  133 

this  group  are  of  the  alloys,  though  an  occasional  piece  in  iron  testifies 
to  their  skill  in  handling  the  sterner  medium  with  equal  effect. 

An  independent  artist,  whose  original  style  can  easily  be  recognized, 
is  Masatsugu  Ichijusai,  whom  H.  Joly  and  K.  Tomita1  place  in  the 
early  nineteenth  century.  His  style  is  bold  and  striking.  Employing  iron 
for  the  foundation,  he  has  brought  out  the  details  with  reliefs  of  silver 
and  extremely  fine  inlay  of  gold.  Fig.  2  on  Plate  X.LVII  is  an  excellent 
example  of  his  skill,  signed  as  it  is,  "Made  by  Masatsugu  Ichijusai  who 
lived  in  Suifu  (Mito)."  Of  irregular  form,  the  edge  is  bounded  by  a 
cloud-like  design  similar  to  the  rugged  outline  of  the  seppa  dai.  On 
the  unevenly  chiselled  surface  in  low  relief  in  the  centre  of  the  guard 
is  the  dramatic  figure  of  T'ai  Kung,  the  aged  priest,  who  with  his 
double-edged  sword  executed  Ta  Ki,  one  of  China's  most  notoriously 
wicked  women. 

As  paramour  of  the  emperor  Chou  Sin  she  led  the  court  into  most 
dissolute  practices.  When  the  reformers  tried  to  change  the  habits  of 
the  ruler,  they  were  rewarded  by  being  made  to  walk  on  a  red  hot 
tube  of  copper  smeared  with  oil  until  they  fell  into  a  blazing  pit  of 
charcoal  below.  Finally,  Wu  Wang  founder  of  the  Chou  dynasty,  rose 
and  opposed  the  emperor  who,  defeated,  fled  to  a  palace  which  he  set  on 
fire.  By  order  of  Wu  Wang,  Ta  Ki  was  killed  by  an  old  priest,  T'ai 
Kung,  and  her  body  burned.  Her  spirit  is  said  to  have  emerged  in  the 
form  of  a  nine-tailed  fox.2  The  reverse  of  this  tsuba  by  Masatsugu 
makes  quite  as  dramatic  an  appeal  as  the  obverse  side.  Over  a  similarly 
roughened  ground  are  inlaid  in  gold  relief  flashes  of  lightning,  one  of 
which  encompasses  the  neck  of  a  large  fox.  The  head  is  in  silver  relief, 
realistically  carved ;  the  nine  tails  are  skillfully  inlaid  in  the  finest  of  gold 
nunome-zogan. 

A  name  which  is  not  listed  in  the  record  of  metal-workers,  compiled 
by  S.  Hara,  is  that  of  Yasumitsu,  who  states  on  the  tsuba  (Plate  XLVII, 
Fig.  3)  that  he  was  a  resident  of  Mito.  He  was  independent,  as  far  as 
is  known,  of  any  of  the  schools.  The  tsuba  made  by  him  is  of  iron  and 
of  mokkd  form.  On  both  sides  patches  have  been  broadly  chiselled 
away  to  produce  an  uneven  ground.  On  the  reverse  a  full  moon  emerg- 
ing from  clouds,  is  inlaid  in  silver  nunome ;  on  the  obverse,  near  snow- 
laden  rushes  in  relief  of  copper,  gold,  and  silver,  is  a  pair  of  mandarin 


'Japanese  Art  and  Handicraft,  p.  176. 

*F.  W.  Mayers,  Chinese  Reader's  Manual,  p.  211 ;  and  H.  Joly,  Legend  in 
Japanese  Art,  p.  353. 


134  Japanese  Sword-Mounts 

ducks  (oshidori),  emblem  of  conjugal  felicity,  a  subject  which  appears 
constantly  in  Chinese  and  Japanese  art. 

The  name  of  three  other  unaffiliated  artists  who  are  represented  in 
this  collection  should  be  mentioned  before  leaving  the  large  Mito  group. 
Watari  Tanetora  has  sculptured  a  scaled  dragon  writhing  through 
cavernous  openings  in  an  iron  guard  dated  "sixth  year  of  Bunkwa" — 
that  is,  1811.  The  glyptic  art  of  Katsuhira  Seiryoken  may  be  admired 
in  a  small  tsuba,  also  of  iron,  from  which  two  flying  cranes  are  carved 
in  the  round  (see  also  p.  183).  Seo  Mototada,  who  signs  himself  a 
pupil  of  Nanjo  (Motonaga)  and  a  retainer  of  Kojo,  has  left  a  pleasing 
iron  tsuba  decorated  with  a  copper  badger  (tanuki)  puffed  out  in  the 
orthodox  Japanese  fashion  and  beating  a  tattoo  on  his  abdomen,  as  he 
looks  up  toward  the  full  moon  inlaid  in  relief  of  gold. 

Besides  the  groups  presided  over  by  the  four  families  mentioned  at 
the  opening  of  this  chapter,  there  was  a  large  school  known  as  the 
Tamagawa,  which  was  an  offshoot  of  the  Koami,  having  sprung  from 
the  disciple  of  that  school,  named  Michinaga,  who  died  in  1768  (p.  131). 
In  this  group  there  were  over  thirty  members,  most  of  whom  showed 
a  strong  tendency  toward  the  Nara  style,  using  a  variety  of  metals,  and 
generally  adorning  their  fittings  with  figures  in  relief.  Most  renowned 
among  these  men  was  Yoshinaga,  a  pupil  of  the  founder  and  maker  of 
the  tsuba  on  Plate  XLVIII,  Fig.  1.  This  guard  is  of  dark  blue  shakudo 
and  adorned  with  reliefs  in  several  shades  of  gold,  silver,  shibuichi,  and 
copper.  The  scene  depicted  is  often  met  with  and  illustrates  the  descent 
of  Yoshitsune  on  the  castle  of  the  Taira,  at  the  battle  of  Ichi-no-Tani 
in  1 184.  The  advance-guard,  riding  a  brown  horse,  dashes  down  the  cliff 
which  is  described  in  the  records  as  "too  steep  for  the  descent  of  apes." 
Yoshitsune  follows,  wearing  the  horned  helmet  now  to  be  seen  in  the 
monastery  on  Mount  Kuruma.  He  rides  a  black  charger,  and  an 
attendant  following  holds  aloft  the  Genji  standard.  The  faces  of  the 
armed  companions  are  sculptured  in  a  realistic  manner.  On  the  reverse 
side  of  the  tsuba,  above  foam-flecked  waves,  rises  the  castle  of  the 
enemy,  with  pennants  of  silver  and  gold  flying  in  the  breeze.  The 
details  of  the  costumes,  armor,  and  horse-trappings  are  admirably 
worked  out ;  even  the  fur-covered  scabbard  on  Yoshitsune's  long  sword 
is  finished  with  delicate  inlay  and  surface  carving  to  produce  the  soft 
texture  of  the  tiger  skin. 

A  nephew  and  pupil,  named  Yoshihisa  Joyeiken,  Kukuken,  or  Toun, 
succeeded  Yoshinaga,  and  until  1797,  when  he  died  at  the  age  of  sixty- 
seven  years,  held  up  the  glory  of  the  family.  He  was  followed  by  his 


The  Tamagawa  Family  135 

adopted  son,  Yoshihisa  II,  sometimes  known  as  Yoshinori.  He,  in  turn, 
handed  down  his  skill  in  the  craft  of  tsuba-making  to  his  son  Yoshihisa 
III,  who  sometimes  signed  himself  "Yoshiyuki." 

The  son  of  Yoshinaga  bore  his  father's  name,  but  inscribed  it  with 
different  characters  (see  p.  189)  and  often  used  the  name  Masanaga. 
He  has  left  some  good  examples  of  metal-work,  but  he  did  not  possess 
the  originality  and  the  technical  excellence  of  his  cousins,  named  Yoshi- 
hisa. He  is  responsible,  however,  for  the  training  of  such  a  successful 
artist  as  Yasunori  of  the  Nukagawa  family,  who  in  the  early  nineteenth 
century  studied  under  him.  Among  the  several  young  craftsmen  who 
frequented  the  studio  of  the  last-mentioned  artist,  were  Kanzawa  Mitsu- 
naga  Koyosai  or  Ichimusai  of  Yedo  and  Yasunaga,  who  lived  in  the 
province  of  Kozuke  in  the  early  nineteenth  century.  Two  tsuba  of  brass 
signed  "Yasunaga"  with  kakikan  are  in  this  collection ;  one  of  them  ap- 
pears in  Plate  XLVIII,  Fig.  2.  On  the  obverse,  upon  an  ishime  surface, 
the  artist  has  inlaid  in  high  relief  a  forceful  portrait  of  the  Buddhist 
priest  Daruma,  Bodhidharma,  the  patriarch  of  India,  to  whom  is  attrib- 
uted the  introduction  into  China  of  the  Zen  sect  of  Buddhism  in  the  sixth 
century.  Legend  has  been  busy  surrounding  this  character  with  interest- 
ing experiences.  He  is  said  to  have  sat  at  one  time  so  long  in  contempla- 
tion, that  on  arising  his  legs  fell  off,  having  rotted  away  in  the  nine  years 
of  his  inactivity.  Again,  while  meditating,  he  is  reported  to  have  fallen 
asleep.  On  awaking  he  was  so  disturbed  at  his  weakness,  that  he  cut 
off  his  eyelids  and  threw  them  on  the  ground,  whereupon,  according  to 
some  accounts,  they  grew  into  tea  leaves.  Often  represented  as  crossing 
a  stream  on  a  reed  or  journeying  to  China  carrying  a  single  shoe,  he  is 
here  pictured  with  uncovered  head  and  evidently  in  deep  concentration 
of  thought,  a  bold  and  simple  delineation  characteristic  of  Zen  ideals. 
The  head  is  sculptured  from  shibuichi,  gray  brown  in  tone  and  tending 
to  suggest  a  swarthy  skin.  In  the  ears  are  hung  rings  of  gold.  The 
robe  in  which  his  hand  is  hidden  is  carved  from  copper.  On  the  reverse 
of  the  tsuba  there  is  in  relief  of  silver  a  golden  handled  chowry  of  the 
form  called  hossu,  or  futsujin,  originally  made  of  the  white  hair  of  a  yak 
or  of  a  horse,  and  carried  by  Buddhist  priests  to  be  used  symbolically 
to  rid  the  atmosphere  of  evil  influences  or  actually  to  drive  away  insects 
disturbing  to  contemplation. 

The  third  tsuba  on  Plate  XLVIII  is  imbued  with  the  Buddhistic 
spirit,  which  is  likewise  suggested  with  breadth  and  subtlety.  It  is 
signed  "Yasunori  at  the  base  of  San  Yen  mountain"  {Yasunori  [kaki- 
han]  Oite  San  Yen  Yama  fumoto).    On  the  reverse  is  the  date  "Third 


136  Japanese  Sword-Mounts 

Year  of  Meiji;"  that  is,  1870.  The  tsuba  is  of  silver  with  plain  surface 
save  for  a  bit  of  carving  around  the  riohitsu.  Dried  reeds  and  two 
faded  lotus-leaves  tell  of  the  swampy  pond  which  the  dull  silver  suggests. 
The  changing  colors  of  the  dying  leaves  are  reproduced  in  a  soft  brown 
iron  tinged  on  the  edges  with  yellow  gold, — a  most  unusual  combination 
to  find  inlaid  on  the  light  silver,  but  one  which  is  particularly  effective. 
Among  the  different  symbolisms  woven  around  the  lotus,  that  of  the 
pale  flower  rising  from  the  mud,  thus  signifying  the  possibility  of  a 
pure  life  emerging  from  a  dark  and  noisesome  environment,  is  one  which 
is  ever  eloquent  in  its  appeal.  Yasunori  is  an  unknown  artist  so  far  as 
the  records  are  concerned,  but  he  is  associated  with  the  Tamagawa  fam- 
ily, since  it  is  thought  likely  that  he  studied  under  Nukagawa  Yasunori. 
Another  example  from  his  hand  appears  in  the  collection  of  G.  Oeder 
(No.  1725). 


BFL1 


■.»«*»>>  'I!  ++>*/* 


Ml  ttf  fljfe 
c     i      lo^f 

isin  of  ftusfi 

XVI.  THE  UCHIKOSHI  AND  TANAKA  SCHOOLS. 
THE  SONOBE  FAMILY 

In  Yedo,  about  the  year  1800,  a  pupil  of  Tamagawa  Yoshinaga 
(Masanaga)  founded  the  school  known  as  the  Uchikoshi.  His  name  may* 
be  read  in  three  ways :  Hironaga,  Hirotoshi,  or  Koju ;  all  of  these 
readings  are  apt  to  be  encountered  in  the  lists  of  makers  of  sword-fit- 
tings. His  early  name,  Konishi  Bunshichi,  rarely  appears.  In  the 
excellence  of  finish  and  the  decorative  quality  of  his  pieces,  one  imme- 
diately recognizes  the  heritage  which  came  to  all  metal-workers  in  Japan 
in  the  nineteenth  century.  An  almost  countless  number  of  processes 
had  been  perfected  through  the  foregoing  centuries.  Methods  of  mould- 
ing and  forging,  recipes  for  mixing  and  coloring  metals,  treatments  for 
the  production  of  unusual  surface  decoration,  inlay  of  various  kinds, 
line  engraving  and  tooling,  chiselling  in  saw-cuts  or  sculpturing  in  the 
round,  all  of  these  methods  of  adorning  the  metal  mounts  had  been 
tried,  improved  upon,  and  brought  to  a  high  degree  of  excellence  by 
the  hundreds  of  artists  who  had  spent  their  time  and  effort  on  the  deco- 
ration of  the  sword. 

The  products  of  Hironaga  Ichijosai  or  Jounsai  are  in  most  cases 
happy  evidence  of  the  accumulated  skill  of  the  pioneer  craftsmen.  On 
Plate  XLIX  there  are  five  pieces  from  the  chisel  of  this  artist  which 
illustrate  the  diversity  of  his  genius.  Fig.  1  is  a  shibuichi  tsuba,  with  a 
clean-cut  ishime  ground  broken  by  soft  waves  cut  in  kebori.  At  the 
right,  in  high  relief  of  gold,  shakudo,  and  shibuichi,  is  the  figure  of 
Yoritomo,  founder  of  the  shogunate  in  1192  and  half-brother  of 
Yoshitsune.  Engaged  in  one  of  his  favorite  pastimes,  he  and  his  at- 
tendant are  looking  up  toward  flying  cranes  which  have  been  released 
from  a  bamboo  cage.  Yoritomo  was  wont  to  tie  on  their  feet  cards 
warning  persons  against  the  capture  of  these  birds,  requesting  instead 
that  any  who  saw  them  alight  would  record  that  fact  and  send  them 
back.  On  the  reverse  side  of  the  tsuba  a  sword-bearer  kneels  near  the 
water's  edge.  Inlaid  in  gold,  on  the  main  figure  on  the  obverse,  is  the 
gentian  crest  of  the  Minamoto  family  of  which  Yoritomo  was  a  member. 
The  bird  cage  is  in  low  relief  of  gold,  the  cranes  are  of  silver  with 
shakudo  tail-feathers,  and  the  feet  and  cards  are  of  gold.  On  this  tsuba 
and  the  next  one  to  be  considered  the  signature  is  written  in  cursive, 
"Hironaga  (kakihan)  Ichijosai." 

137 


138  Japanese  Sword-Mounts 

The  tsuba  in  Fig.  2,  made  of  iron  with  a  soft  brown  patina,  illus- 
trates Hironaga's  skill  in  sculpturing  the  harder  metal.  At  the  top  of 
the  tsuba,  soft  clouds  partly  cover  the  uppermost  branches  of  a  tree 
carved  in  the  round.  At  the  right,  two  figures  approach,  one  of  whom 
leads  a  kara-shishi  ("Chinese  lion"),  tethered  by  a  golden  chain.  H. 
Joly1  describes  this  couple  as  "the  foreigners  from  Ranha."  The  face, 
arms,  and  legs  of  the  woman  are  of  shibuichi,  her  eyes  of  gold,  and  the 
details  of  her  costume  of  gold  and  silver.  The  man's  figure,  carved 
entirely  from  the  iron,  is  lightened  by  bosses  of  gold  inlay  on  his  leggings 
and  skirt.  On  the  reverse,  near  a  waterfall  inlaid  in  silver,  are  bamboo 
shoots  in  gold  relief. 

The  dark  blue  shakudo  tsuba  (Plate  XLIX,  Fig.  3)  is  also  the  work 
of  Hironaga  who  states  thereon  that  he  was  a  dweller  in  Yedo.  The 
kakihan  is  distinctly  different  from  the  one  following  the  signatures 
written  in  cursive.  This  highly  finished  piece  of  metal-work  exemplifies 
the  jewelry-like  quality  of  nineteenth-century  mounts.  It  is  a  far  cry 
from  the  pure  art  displayed  in  the  sombre  iron  guards  of  Myochin 
Nobuiye  or  of  the  graceful  silhouettes  of  the  Akasaka  and  Higo  artists 
or  of  Kinai  of  Echizen.  The  tsuba  is  no  longer  a  protective  plaque  for 
a  fighting  warrior's  hand  tested  in  grim  battle,  but  rather  the  exquisite 
adornment  for  a  sword  which  supplements  the  elegant  costume  worn  at 
the  shogun's  court.  Much  is  heard  of  the  "Glorious  Primitives,"  and 
many  collectors  have  gone  so  far  as  to  disdain  any  except  the  old  iron 
guards;  but  a  close  examination  of  this  tsuba  by  Hironaga  and  many 
other  contemporary  pieces  disproves  the  popular  theory  that  only  the  old 
are  the  truly  artistic  products.  It  is  simply  that  the  appeal  of  these 
fittings,  characteristic  of  the  efflorescent  age,  is  a  different  one  from 
the  restrained  and  noble  beauty  displayed  on  the  earlier  mounts. 

The  subjects  portrayed  on  this  sword-guard  (Plate  XLIX,  Fig.  3) 
appear  very  often  on  sword-fittings.  A  tsuba  in  this  collection  by  Joi, 
as  well  as  several  fuchikashira,  are  ornamented  with  one,  two,  or  all 
three  of  the  famous  Chinese  heroes  of  Shu. 

Kwan  Yii  (died  a.d.  219),  Liu  Pei  (a.d.  162-223,  Japanese  Gentoku, 
see  p.  114),  and  Chang  Fei  (died  in  a.d.  220),  known  in  Japan  as  Chohi, 
were  three  famed  friends  who  plighted  their  allegiance  to  one  another 
in  a  peach  garden  at  Cho  in  Chi-li  Province.  Liu  Pei,  later  emperor  of 
Shu  and  founder  of  the  Han  dynasty,  was  followed  through  all  the  stir- 
ring adventures  of  his  checkered  career  by  Kwan  Yii.  The  latter  per- 
formed many  valiant  acts,  and  was  celebrated  as  one  of  China's  military 

^Japanese  Art  and  Handicraft,  p.  145,  No.  552. 


The  Uchikoshi  School  139 

heroes,  until  in  1594  he  was  proclaimed  //("emperor")  and  hencefor- 
ward worshipped  as  Kwan  Ti,  the  "God  of  War."  Chang  Fei,  who 
followed  the  trade  of  a  butcher  until  he  allied  himself  with  Liu  Pei  and 
Kwan  Yu,  also  developed,  through  the  exploits  of  his  fellows,  into  a 
brave  and  mighty  warrior.    He  was  made  ruler  of  Shu  by  Liu  Pei. 

On  this  tsuba,  Chohi,  with  fan-like  beard,  leans  on  a  forked  halberd, 
and  stands  behind  Kwan  Yu  whom  Hironaga  has  pictured  seated  at  a 
table  and  gazing  intently  upon  an  open  book.  The  colors  of  the  metals 
chosen  to  paint  these  combined  portraits  are  many  and  beautiful.  The 
face  of  Kwan  Yu  is  of  copper.  His  long,  flowing,  black  beard  is  of 
shakudo  very  carefully  chiselled  in  kebori.  Chohi's  hair  is  of  shibuichi, 
his  face  of  silver,  his  eyes  are  flashing  gold  with  black  pupils.  Brocade 
patterns  on  both  of  the  costumes  are  brought  out  by  the  inlaying  of  three 
shades  of  gold.  Such  details  as  the  tassel  on  the  halberd  and  the  tying 
cords  on  Chohi's  breastplate  are  of  a  very  light  red  copper. 

This  last-mentioned  metal  forms  the  obverse  side  of  the  kozuka 
(Plate  XLIX,  Fig.  4),  also  the  work  of  the  master  Hironaga.  At  the 
right  may  be  distinguished  a  calabash  from  which  proceeds  a  puff  of 
wind  laden  with  innumerable  prancing  horses,  spotted  in  gold,  and  con- 
tinuing in  their  tumultuous  movement  on  the  reverse  side  of  the  kozuka 
where  they  are  etched  in  kebori.  It  is  a  charming  reference  to  the  Sen- 
nin  Chokwaro,  known  in  China  as  Chang  Kwo,  and  one  of  the  Eight 
Immortals  of  the  Taoists.  This  being  had  the  power  to  evoke  from  his 
calabash  a  horse  or  mule,  on  whose  back  he  proceeded  on  long  journeys. 
When  through  with  the  beast,  he  would  fold  it  up  and  put  it  back  into 
the  receptacle,  where  it  would  remain  until  the  next  journey,  when, 
ejecting  water  from  his  mouth  upon  the  crumpled  form,  Chokwaro 
would  bring  the  horse  to  life  again.  H.  Joly1  asserts  that  the  horse 
coming  out  of  a  gourd  refers  to  the  proverb,  "The  horse  coming  out  of 
a  gourd  is  a  very  unexpected  occurrence"  (Hyotan  kara  koma). 

The  object  in  Fig.  5  (Plate  XLIX)  is  signed  with  the  names  Jounsai 
(inlaid  in  gold)  and  Hironaga  (inlaid  in  copper).  It  is  a  kozuka  of 
shakudo  with  a  nanako  obverse,  upon  which,  in  relief  of  silver,  shibuichi, 
copper,  and  gold,  Kanzan  and  Jittoku  (p.  94)  lie  resting.  Three 
ribbon-like  bands  of  copper,  gold,  and  silver  are  inlaid  obliquely  across 
the  reverse  side. 

Hironaga  had  several  pupils,  few  of  whom,  however,  are  listed  in  the 
records.  There  are  two  whose  names  appear  in  Hara's  list,  and  who 
also  are  represented  by  specimens  in  this  collection.     Hiroyasu,  also 

'Legend  in  Japanese  Art,  p.  42. 


140  Japanese  Sword-Mounts 

called  Jinzo,  came  from  the  province  of  Echigo.  He  has  chosen  two 
interesting  subjects  to  decorate  the  tsuba  which  represent  him  in  this 
study.  His  treatment  of  waves  on  the  brass  guard  (Plate  L,  Fig.  i)  is 
strongly  reflective  of  his  teacher's  methods.  At  the  right  stands  a  fisher- 
man whose  small  skiff,  in  relief  of  copper,  may  be  seen  on  the  reverse 
side  of  the  guard.  The  muscular  figure  of  the  man  is  chiselled  from 
shibuichi.  He  wears  a  straw  skirt,  to  the  belt  of  which  is  attached  a 
basket  in  relief  of  gold.  On  his  brow  is  a  head-band  of  silver  and  in 
his  hand  a  burning  torch  with  flames  of  red  copper.  With  two  slender 
lines,  in  relief  of  gold,  he  guides  a  pair  of  cormorants  sculptured  from 
shakudo  with  bills  of  silver. 

B.  Chamberlain1  quotes  an  account  written  by  Maj.-Gen.  Palmer, 
who  describes  in  detail  the  unique  process  of  fishing  with  cormorants  as 
practised  in  Japan.  This  sport  is  always  carried  on  at  night,  when  the 
startled  fish  swim  toward  the  blazing  torches.  The  cormorants  are 
harnessed  with  a  cord  around  the  body,  to  which  is  attached  a  whalebone 
strip  used  to  steady  the  bird  as  it  is  lowered  into  or  lifted  from  the 
water.  About  the  neck  is  drawn  a  metal  band  tight  enough  so  as  to 
allow  only  small  fish  to  pass  below  it.  The  larger  fish  are  lodged  in  the 
peculiar  sac  in  the  throat.  After  swallowing  a  certain  number  of  fish, 
the  bird  becomes  dizzy,  and  is  drawn  in  and  made  to  disgorge  his  cap- 
ture. Cormorants  are  said  to  become  wise  enough  not  to  try  to  swallow 
a  fish-tail  first,  lest  the  tail  and  fins  cut  the  throat.  They  have  been  seen 
to  flip  a  fish  into  the  air  and  catch  it  head  first.  Such  an  exhibition  is 
pictured  on  the  tsuba  (Plate  L,  Fig.  i),  where  the  cormorant  at  the  left 
reaches  up  with  open  bill  toward  a  small  fish  descending. 

The  other  guard  signed  by  Hiroyasu  (Plate  L,  Fig.  2)  is  of  shakudo 
with  a  surface  decoration  of  fine  ishime.  The  scene  is  evidently  that 
outside  the  entrance  of  a  house  on  New  Year's  day.  On  both  the 
reverse  and  obverse  sides,  the  pine  placed  on  either  side  of  the  door 
(kado  matsu)  is  chiselled  in  kebori,  the  new  growths  on  the  tips  of 
each  branch  being  inlaid  in  relief  of  gold.  Above  hangs  a  shimenaiva 
(p.  118).  The  straw  rope  itself  and  the  pendants  are  in  relief  of  yellow 
gold,  the  leaves  of  the  fern  (Polypodium  dicotomon,  in  Japanese 
urajiro)  are  carved  from  green  shibuichi,  while  the  paper  gohei  are  made 
of  silver.  At  the  right,  two  strolling  dancers  are  performing  the  lion 
dance  (shishi  mai  or  dai  kagura),  one  of  the  oldest  dances  of  Japan,  and 
one  which  is  still  performed  as  a  sacred  dance  at  certain  temples.    It 

1  Things   Japanese,   5th   ed.,   pp.    105-108. 


CF I 


^Mklfc'O 


The  Uchikoshi  School  141 

is  doubtless  an  adaptation  from  a  foreign  dance,  and  is  most  likely 
derived  from  the  taiheiraku  of  China.1 

For  several  centuries  it  has  been  performed  on  New  Year's  day  by 
strolling  street  dancers.  Up  until  1655  it  was  customary  to  see  two 
unattended  performers  going  from  door  to  door.  In  the  later  years  the 
dancers  were  often  accompanied  by  a  number  of  musicians,  a  collector, 
and  a  few  stage  properties.  It  is  the  older  and  simpler  form  which  is 
represented  on  the  tsuba  illustrated  herein.  A  man,  who  doubtless 
has  a  small  drum  suspended  beneath  the  robe,  holds  in  his  hand  a 
drumstick,  and  wears  the  typical  shishi  mask  with  movable  jaw.  A 
pendant  gohci  is  hanging  down  his  back.  His  figure  is  completely  cov- 
ered with  a  large  rippling  cloth,  sculptured  from  shakudo  with  a  chis- 
elled pattern  in  which  gold  dots  are  inlaid.  A  young  attendant  in 
shibuichi  dress  with  a  girdle  of  gold  is  creeping  under  the  loose  end  of 
the  robe  preparatory  to  the  enacting  of  the  dance.  The  colored  metals, 
such  as  the  copper  from  which  the  mask  is  carved,  and  the  green 
shibuichi  and  yellow  gold  used  to  depict  the  shimcnawa,  are  set  off  to 
fine  effect  by  the  dark  blue  shakudo  background. 

The  tsuba  associated  on  the  same  plate  with  the  two  foregoing  pieces 
does  not  possess  particular  beauty,  but  is  reproduced  as  a  characteristic 
example  of  another  of  Hironaga's  pupils.  Hiroyoshi  Jogetsusai,  who 
occasionally  signed  himself  Gensuke,  lived  in  the  early  nineteenth 
century,  and  very  often  decorated  his  sword-fittings  with  the  subject  of 
the  rats'  or  foxes'  wedding.  On  the  obverse  side  of  this  brass  tsuba 
(Plate  L,  Fig.  3),  three  animals  clothed  as  samurai  head  the  procession 
which  is  continued  on  the  reverse.  The  main  part  of  the  large  company 
is  etched  in  kebori  on  the  under  side  of  the  sword-guard.  In  the  midst 
of  this  pictured  crowd,  there  is  a  litter  in  which  the  bride  is  being  carried 
to  the  home  of  her  husband.  H.  Joly,2  in  describing  a  similar  specimen, 
designates  the  animals  as  rats,  but  it  seems  far  more  likely  that  they 
represent  foxes,  and  that  this  decoration  is  a  picture  of  the  foxes'  wed- 
ding made  familiar  to  many  persons  through  A.  Mitford's3  recounting 
of  the  story.  To  be  sure,  the  day  represented  on  this  tsuba  seems  to  be 
a  fair  one,  for  the  slanting  lines  of  rain  usually  accompanying  the  foxes' 
procession  are  not  here  depicted.  The  figures  on  the  obverse  are  in 
relief  of  various  metals,  shibuichi,  gold,  silver,  and  shakudo.  Two 
carry  paper  lanterns,  while  a  third  bears  upon  his  shoulder  a  halberd 

1 H.  Joly,  Random  Notes  on  Dances,  Masks  and  the  Early  Forms  of  Theatre 
in  Japan   (Transactions  Japan  Soc,  Vol.  XI,  p.  30). 

'Japanese  Sword  Fittings  in  the  Naunton  Collection,  No.  1706. 
"Tales  of  Old  Japan,  pp.  270-272. 


142  Japanese  Sword-Mounts 

covered  over  with  a  cloth.  Many  pieces  bearing  this  subject  of  decora- 
tion are  to  be  seen  in  collections  of  sword-fittings,  three  are  owned  by 
this  museum,  two  of  them  being  unsigned  and  inferior  in  workmanship 
to  this  one  by  Hiroyoshi  Jogetsusai. 

Though  there  were  several  schools  of  the  name  Tanaka  in  Yedo  and 
Kyoto,  the  two  which  had  the  largest  following  were  those  founded  by 
Masayoshi  and  Kiyonaga,  respectively.  Masayoshi  had  studied  under 
Goto  Yetsujo  in  the  beginning  of  the  eighteenth  century.  He  was  suc- 
ceeded by  his  son  Masaf usa  who  further  perfected  his  art  by  working  in 
the  studio  of  Goto  Ranjo.  Tomomasa,  Yoshiaki,  and  Yoshiyuki  all 
belong  to  this  group  which  was  strictly  influenced  by  the  Goto  artists. 

Kiyonaga,  on  the  other  hand,  seems  to  have  evolved  for  himself  an 
individual  style  from  the  diligent  study  of  casts  of  pieces  by  good 
masters  which  he  was  wont  to  collect.  Among  his  many  pupils  were 
Kiyoshige,  his  son,  and  Toshikage  and  Toshishige  (often  erroneously 
called  Nagakage  and  Nagashige).1  These  artists  worked  in  various 
metals,  using  the  alloys  quite  as  often  as  they  employed  iron.  It  was 
through  the  medium  of  the  harder  metal,  however,  that  their  finest 
effects  were  accomplished.  Kiyonaga  inaugurated  a  peculiar  style  of 
gold  and  silver  nunome-zogan,  particularly  suited  to  the  reproducing  of 
clouds.  This  method  of  decoration  shows  up  to  full  advantage  when 
applied  to  a  dark  brown  iron  background.  Fujiwara  Kiyonaga,  also 
known  by  the  names  Toryiisai  and  Bunjiro,  was  awarded  the  honorary 
title  of  Hogen  ("Eye  of  the  Law").  Very  often  he  signed  his  products 
solely  with  his  kakihan,  particularly  those  which  were  made  as  presenta- 
tion tsuba  (ken jo).2 

His  most  renowned  pupil  is  Morikawa  Toshikage,  who  was  born 
in  1839,  and  who  was  still  living  at  the  age  of  forty.  He  used  the  names 
Hoshinsai  and  Ichiryiishi,  occasionally  adding  the  Fujiwara  seal.  Two 
products  from  his  chisel  are  in  this  collection,  one  being  illustrated  in 
Plate  LI,  Figs.  1  and  2.  It  has  been  deemed  advisable  to  illustrate  both 
the  obverse  and  reverse  sides  of  this  iron  tsuba  of  mokko  form,  since 
each  is  an  excellent  manifestation  of  the  genius  of  Toshikage.  The  sub- 
ject, the  lion  (shishi)  and  the  king  of  flowers,  the  peony  (in  this  combi- 
nation known  as  botan  ni  kara-shishi) ,  is  very  often  depicted,  but  seldom 
does  it  have  as  dramatic  an  interpretation  as  on  this  small  field.  Within 
a  raised  rim  chiselled  in  cloud-like  irregularity,  the  artist  has  sculptured 

1 H.  Joly  and  K.  Tomita,  Japanese  Art  and  Handicraft,  p.  170. 
aH.  Joly,  Inscriptions  of  Japanese  Sword  Fittings  (Transactions  Japan  Soc, 
Vol.  XV,  p.  90). 


WWERSITYOFU^USLn;;AJ/ 


•*'  A.X,'»h»V^«- 


The  Tanaka  School  143 

a  driving  storm  passing  over  a  clouded  mountain.  Below  is  a  rushing 
stream  on  whose  waves  are  golden  flecks  of  foam.  The  snarling  lion 
with  flowing  mane  and  tail  is  modelled  in  relief  of  shibuichi,  the  spots 
on  his  coat  being  inlaid  in  gold.  The  whole  body  of  the  animal  is  instinct 
with  life.  Above,  through  the  slanting  lines  of  rain,  emerge  peonies 
delicately  carved  from  silver ;  their  dark  leaves  of  iron  are  touched  with 
gold  nunome.  It  is  interesting  to  compare  this  tsuba  with  two  pieces  in 
the  Naunton  collection,1  which  are  also  the  work  of  this  artist.  They 
are  of  shibuichi  decorated  with  reliefs  very  closely  resembling  those 
described  above.  The  other  tsuba  by  Toshikage,  in  this  Museum,  is  oval, 
and  likewise  bounded  by  a  raised  rim  within  which  there  is  a  cloudy 
border.  A  tiger,  seated  near  large  bamboo  sprouts,  is  pictured  on  the 
obverse,  while  a  mountain-peak  and  rushing  stream  in  relief  of  silver 
decorate  the  reverse. 

This  same  popular  subject,  the  king  of  beasts,  the  tiger  seeking  out 
a  place  of  hiding  and  protection  in  the  bamboo  thicket,  is  presented  by 
another  member  of  the  Tanaka  school.  "Masakage  Hosonsai"  is  the 
name  inscribed  upon  the  iron  tsuba  of  mokko  form  in  Plate  LI,  Fig.  3. 
Though  this  artist  was  evidently  unknown  to  Hara,  Joly  describes  a 
tsuba  which  also  bears  his  signature.2  Silver  nunome  has  been  inlaid 
along  the  cloudy  strip  which  outlines  the  field.  Silver  and  gold  have 
been  utilized  to  bring  out  the  snow  on  the  overhanging  pine  and  the 
stripes  of  the  tiger's  skin.  It  is  a  typical  Tanaka  sword-guard.  The 
riohitsu  are  small,  while  the  opening  for  the  blade  is  in  this  case  large 
and  of  an  unusual  form.  Tanaka  artists  were  accustomed  to  partly  fill 
in  the  terminations  of  this  opening  with  small  plates  of  alloy  covered 
over  with  gold  nunome-zogan.  Those  plates  are  missing  in  this  case. 
Another  tsuba,  signed  with  kakihan  only  (Plate  LXI,  Fig.  8),  resembles 
the  work  of  the  Tanaka.  It  is  of  iron  softly  modelled,  the  centre  carved 
in  openwork  and  tinged  with  clouds  of  gold.  Small  shells  are  inlaid  in 
relief.     The  kakihan  is  that  of  Shigeyasu  of  the  Inouye  family.3 

Takamoto  Hidemuni,  born  in  Yedo  in  1820,  was  a  pupil  of  Kiyonaga. 
who  evidently  broke  away  from  the  Tanaka  style  and  preferred  to  por- 
tray personages  after  the  style  of  the  Ishiguro  and  Hamano  schools, 
showing  forth  a  luxury  of  decoration  and  a  marked  delicacy  of  chiselling. 
Both  of  the  tsuba  in  this  collection,  which  are  signed  with  his  full  name, 


1 H.  Joly,  Japanese  Sword  Fittings  in  the  Naunton  Collection,  Nos.  2289  and 
2290. 

2Op.  cit.,  No.  2302.    For  kakihan  see  Plate  lxi,  Fig.  7,  in  this  publication. 

'According  to  the  Ko  kon  kinko  ben  ran,  Vol.  II,  p.  23. 


144  Japanese  Sword-Mounts 

are  made  of  shibuichi,  and  are  of  a  modified  mokko  form.  The  figure  of 
Minamoto  Yoshiiye  (Plate  LII,  Fig.  i)  is  worked  out  in  fine  detail. 
The  smiling  face  is  in  relief  of  silver  surmounted  by  the  nobleman's 
black  cap  (eboshi)  made  of  shakudo  with  the  tying  cord  of  gold.  The 
hero  wears  a  suit  of  armor  over  a  brocaded  robe  and  holds  in  his  right 
hand  a  folding  fan.  The  fur-covered  scabbard  of  his  long  sword  may 
be  seen  projecting  beyond  his  heavy  shoulder-piece.  The  horse  on  which 
he  rides  is  sculptured  from  shakudo,  suggesting  a  glossy  black  coat 
against  which  the  silver  bridle  and  heavy,  gold-fringed  trappings  shine 
in  splendor.  The  incident  in  the  life  of  Yoshiiye  here  depicted  is  an 
allusion  to  a  poem  which  he  wrote,  as  he  looked  upon  the  fallen  cherry- 
blossoms  at  the  gate  of  Nakoso :  , 

Fuku  kase  wa 
Nakoso  no  seki  to 
Omoye  domo 
Michi  mo  setiichiru 
Yamazakura  kana. 

"At  the  gate  of  Nakoso,  although  there  comes  not  a  breath  of  wind,  why 
are  the  mountain-paths  covered  with  cherry-blossoms?" 

There  is  a  play  upon  the  word  Nakoso  ("come  not").1  A  few  silver 
cherry-leaves  lie  upon  the  ground  at  the  hero's  feet,  while  overhead  a 
twisted  branch  still  retains  the  full-blown  flowers  carefully  chiselled 
from  silver  with  leaves  of  greenish  gold. 

The  same  rich  palette  of  colored  metals  has  been  used  to  "paint" 
the  decoration  on  Fig.  2,  Plate  LII,  where  the  skill  of  Hidemuni  as  a 
chiseller  is  shown  to  fuller  advantage  than  on  the  former  tsuba.  A 
flamed  dragon  with  scales  of  gold  is  seen  at  the  top  emerging  from  a 
bank  of  clouds  which  had  its  origin  in  the  uplifted  bowl  of  the  Chinese 
Chen  Nan  (Chinnan  in  Japanese).  A  young  attendant  of  the  Arhat 
looks  up  admiringly  toward  the  dragon  which,  it  is  said,  Chinnan  was 
empowered  to  evoke  at  will  from  his  calabash  or  bowl.  The  figures  are 
modelled  from  silver,  the  draperies  are  of  gold  and  shakudo  etched  with 
brocade  patterns.  The  broken  lines  of  chiselling  with  which  the  clouds 
are  carved  add  markedly  to  the  movement  suggested. 

As  was  observed  above,  certain  members  of  the  Tanaka  family 
studied  under  Goto  masters,  and  were  completely  influenced  by  the  style 
of  their  teachers.  Of  this  group  Yoshiaki  is  recognized  as  the  most 
gifted.  His  pupil,  Sonobe  Yoshitsugu  (1778-1842),  carried  his  master's 
methods  into  all  of  his  work.  On  such  a  piece  as  the  kozuka  (Plate  LII, 
Fig.  3),  for  instance,  he  has  recaptured  the  old  spirit  of  the  sixteen 

1 H.  Joly,  Legend  in  Japanese  Art,  p.  405. 


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The  Sonobe  Family  145 

masters  of  the  Goto  school.  Very  suggestive  of  some  of  those  early 
mitokoromono  is  the  shakudo  dragon,  with  flaming  appendages  of  gold 
grasping  a  golden  jewel,  and  set  forth  to  fine  effect  against  a  gold  nanako 
ground.  The  separate  plate  on  which  the  decoration  stands  is  set  into  a 
kozuka  of  shakudo  which  is  inscribe^,  "Sonobe  Yoshitsugu."  Working 
as  a  chiseller  to  the  daimyo  of  Yanagawa,  he  became  a  renowned  artist, 
signing  his  products  with  the  names  Denzo  and  Tanso. 

His  son,  named  Yoshihide,  inherited  his  father's  skill  in  the  delicate 
handling  of  metals.  The  tsuba  (Plate  LII,  Fig.  4)  is  one  of  his  deco- 
rative pieces  (See  LXI,  Fig.  9,  for  kakihan).  Not  only  is  the  bilobate 
form  of  the  tsuba  unusual,  but  also  the  combination  of  shakudo  and 
brass  for  the  two  sides  is  an  uncommon  choice  of  metals.  The  obverse 
is  of  the  darker  medium,  and  likely  is  selected  to  represent  the  darkness 
of  night  passing  away  at  the  first  touch  of  dawn  suggested  by  the  golden 
rays  of  sun  rising  behind  clouds  which  are  tinged  with  red,  being  sculp- 
tured from  copper.  Poised  in  flight,  a  graceful  crane  floats  above  the 
clouds.  The  feathered  body  is  carefully  chiselled  from  silver  with  tail- 
feathers  of  shakudo,  crest  of  red  copper,  beak  and  legs  of  gold.  On  the 
sunny  yellow  brass  reverse,  two  sparrows  in  relief  of  copper  and 
shakudo  flutter  near  a  bamboo  pole  and  rope,  to  which  is  attached  a 
rattle  commonly  used  to  frighten  away  birds  from  the  rice-fields.  It  is 
a  remarkable  effect  which  Yoshihide  has  produced  on  this  highly  finished 
work  of  art.  One  is  entirely  unconscious  of  the  hard  medium  through 
which  the  picture  is  presented.  On  the  obverse  the  clouds  are  so  broken 
as  to  appear  shifting  and  fluent,  and  the  delicately  inlaid  bits  of  gold  are 
as  immaterial  in  impression  as  the  rays  of  light  which  they  represent. 


XVII.    THE  OTSUKI  SCHOOL.     HARUAKI  HOGEN 

In  making  a  survey  of  the  art  of  the  nineteenth-century  metal- 
workers, there  are  certain  sword-fittings  which  claim  for  themselves  a 
dominant  place  on  account  of  their  beauty  and  freshness  of  appeal. 
These  products  usually  are  inscribed  with  one  of  the  three  following 
names:  "Natsiio,  Haruaki  Hogen,  or  Goto  Ichijo,"  those  borne  by  the 
artists  who  are  recognized  as  "the  three  great  moderns."  Each  of  these 
men  developed  and  perfected  a  style  distinctly  his  own. 

Kano  Natsuo  owes  much  of  his  prowess  to  the  school  known  as 
Otsuki  ("Great  Moon").  This  group  was  founded  by  Otsuki  Korin, 
otherwise  called  Mitsushige,  who  lived  in  Owari  in  the  eighteenth  cen- 
tury. Moving  to  Kyoto  in  middle  life,  he  and  his  followers  worked  on 
all  types  of  metal  ornaments,  not  confining  themselves  to  sword-fittings 
alone.  Mitsutsune  and  Mitsuyoshi  are  among  his  pupils,  the  latter  being 
famous  primarily  as  the  father  of  the  foremost  master  of  the  Otsuki 
school.  This  artist,  Mitsuoki,  originated  the  habit  of  writing  the  name 
Otsuki  with  the  single  character  representing  the  word  tsuki  written 
large,  O  meaning  "large"  or  "great."  Names  adopted  by  him  and  found 
on  several  tsuba  are  Ryukudo,  Shiryudo,  or  Shiryii,  as  well  as  Dairyiisai 
or  Ryusai. 

Living  in  the  early  nineteenth  century  in  Kyoto,  Mitsuoki  had  the 
advantage  of  studying  under  Ganku,  the  renowned  painter  of  natural- 
istic subjects,  who  was  then  stationed  at  the  imperial  court.  This  side 
of  his  training  is  reflected  in  many  of  his  productions,  such  as  those 
adorned  with  birds  swimming  on  or  diving  into  the  water,  or  the  more 
simple  designs  of  bending  reeds  or  wind-swept  grasses.  Certain  of  his 
kozuka  and  tsuba  are  inscribed  or  inlaid  with  poems  which  subtly  illumin- 
ate the  subject  of  decoration.1  Figures  too  he  depicted  with  power 
and  grace,  using  both  the  method  of  relief  and  that  of  katakiribori.  A 
few  of  his  tsuba  decorated  by  the  latter  method  are  quite  as  unique  in 
quality  as  the  work  of  Yokoya  Somin.  , 

A  striking  tsuba  with  high  reliefs  is  to  be  seen  on  Plate  LIII,  Fig.  I. 
It  is  inscribed  Mitsuoki  Dairyusai.  It  is  of  a  larger  size  than  is  ordinary 
(9.5  cm  in  length),  and  in  form  is  square  with  cut  corners.  The  body 
of  the  guard  is  iron  covered  with  a  velvety  patina  of  soft  brown.  The 
subject  of  decoration — Watanabe  encountering  the  demon  at  the  gate 
of  Rashomon — is  one  which  has  been  met  with  before  (p.  100). 

1 H.  Joly  and  K.  Tomita,  Japanese  Art  and  Handicraft,  p.  169. 

146 


Otsuki  Mitsuoki  and  Kano  Natsuo  147 

On  the  reverse  side  of  the  tsuba,  the  artist  has  represented  a  pine- 
branch  with  golden  needles,  rent  and  torn  by  a  furious  storm,  which  he 
has  chiselled  with  deep  strokes  out  of  the  iron  field.  It  is  continued  on 
the  obverse  side,  where  the  sweeping  lines,  denoting  a  strong  wind,  carry 
the  attention  to  a  swirl  of  clouds  softly  sculptured  and  touched  with 
flecks  of  gold  inlay.  In  the  centre  of  this  tempest,  the  artist  has  placed 
the  copper  figure  of  the  defiant  demon,  swarthy  and  muscular,  who, 
having  recaptured  her  severed  arm,  calls  down  curses  upon  Watanabe. 
The  hero,  with  whitened  face  in  relief  of  silver,  crouches  below  at  the 
right.  One  can  feel  a  tension  in  each  of  these  figures  which,  though 
small  in  actual  size,  are  largely  conceived  and  executed.  The  flowing 
lines  of  their  garments  add  much  to  the  life  of  the  decoration.  The  robe 
of  the  demon  is  sculptured  from  two  shades  of  gold  with  a  shakudo 
undergarment  inlaid  in  a  brocade  pattern.  Watanabe's  stiff  court-cos- 
tume with  the  flowing  trousers  (shitabakama)  is  chiselled  from  the  iron 
and  covered  over  with  his  crest  (three  stars  over  the  digit  "one")  in- 
laid in  gold.  There  is  in  this  collection  also  a  brass  tsuba  which  is  in- 
scribed as  follows:  "Otsuki  Mitsuoki  (kakihan)  carved  this  after  a 
painting  by  Sii  Hi."  The  decoration  and  treatment  is  almost  identical 
with  a  tsuba  by  Yasuchika,  reproduced  by  L.  Gonse/  which  must  have 
been  inspired  by  the  same  design.  Sii  Hi  was  a  famous  Chinese  painter 
of  the  Sung  dynasty.  The  picture  from  which  these  two  artists  took 
their  design  represents  two  herons  standing  in  a  lotus-pond. 

Mitsuoki  was  succeeded  by  his  two  sons,  Hideoki  and  Atsuoki  or 
Tokuoki,  as  he  is  sometimes  called.  Both  of  these  artists  seem  to  have 
preferred  making  the  smaller  mounts;  only  a  few  tsuba  from  their 
chisels  are  to  be  found.  Mitsuhiro  and  Mitsunao  are  also  listed  as  the 
sons  of  Mitsuoki. 

At  the  same  time  that  these  artisans  were  producing  sword-mounts, 
Kano  Natsuo,  who  was  born  in  1828  in  Kyoto,  must  have  been  receiving 
his  instruction  in  the  art  of  metal-working  from  Ikeda  Takanaga,  who 
was  the  son  of  Ikeda  Okitaka,  one  of  Otsuki  Mitsuoki's  pupils.  He 
also  studied  under  Okumura  Shohachi  of  the  Goto  school.  Many  of  his 
realistic  designs,  especially  those  of  carps  arising  from  or  descending 
into  the  water,  he  owes  to  Nakajima  Raisho,  with  whom  he  studied 
painting.  Raisho  was  a  pupil  of  Okyo  Maruyama,  the  noted  painter 
of  birds,  fishes,  and  animals.  It  is  recorded  that  Natsuo  took  certain  of 
his  designs  direct  from  nature,  particularly  the  peony,  which  he  is  said 
to  have  studied,  but  to  have  found  no  inclination  to  chisel  a  copy  of  the 

*L'Art  japonaise,  Vol.  II,  Plate  xvn,  No.  10. 


148  Japanese  Sword-Mounts 

flower  until  he  chanced  to  see  it,  one  day,  tossed  by  the  wind.1  The  tsuba 
in  the  Hawkshaw  collection  (No.  2487)  remains  to  testify  how  com- 
pletely he  made  this  experience  his  own  and  recorded  it  in  cold  metal  for 
all  art-lovers  to  enjoy. 

In  the  early  years  of  his  life,  Natsuo  was  known  as  Fushimi  Jisaburo 
and  later  as  Juro  or  Nagaaki.  In  1854  he  moved  to  Yedo,  where  later 
he  was  appointed  chief  designer  for  the  imperial  mint  and  also  professor 
of  metal-work  in  the  Tokyo  art  school.  Many  of  his  tsuba  are  made 
of  iron  softly  modelled  and  covered  over  with  a  rich  brown  patina.  In- 
lay, relief,  and  katakiribori  were  all  mastered  by  this  artist,  whose 
products  are  much  sought  after  by  collectors  of  metal-work. 

The  large  iron  tsuba  (Plate  LIII,  Fig.  2)  is  signed  Natsuo  so 
("made  by  Natsuo").  The  riohitsu  which  are  elongated  and  large  recall 
certain  of  the  Higo  tsuba.  This  peculiar  form1  and  the  partially  outlined 
seppa  dai  are  characteristic  touches  on  several  of  the  tsuba  of  Natsuo. 
*  Though  his  finest  effects  are  accomplished  by  a  low-relief  sculpturing  of 
the  ground  metal,  the  high  relief  and  inlay  in  this  case  have  combined 
to  make  an  impressive  decoration.  At  the  lower  right,  the  artist  has 
adorned  the  tsuba  with  a  fully  sculptured  figure  of  a  wolf  carved  with 
fine  realism  from  reddish  bronze  and  standing  near  grasses  in  relief  of 
gold.  The  animal,  with  jaws  open  and  exposing  sharp  teeth,  turns  to 
look  up  toward  a  full  moon  inlaid  in  gold  near  clouds  chiselled  from  the 
iron.  The  moonlit  night  is  continued  on  the  reverse  side  of  the  tsuba, 
where  among  bending  grasses  lie  the  bones  and  skull  of  a  human  being 
shining  in  relief  of  silver  against  the  dark  background.  From  this  side, 
through  one  of  the  riohitsu,  may  be  seen  the  uplifted  head  of  the  baying 
wolf. 

This  decoration,  which  was  probably  adopted  from  a  contemporary 
painting,  is  very  similar  to  that  which  has  been  drawn  on  a  kozuka  in 
the  Naunton  collection  (No.  2353).  The  piece  referred  to  is  signed 
"Kinryusai  Hidekuni,"  the  name  of  one  of  the  pupils  of  Kawarabayashi 
Hideoki.  Sometimes  signing  his  work  with  the  sole  character  for  Gawa 
(Kawa)  from  his  master's  name,  Hidekuni  generally  inscribed  his  pieces 
with  his  own  name  followed  by  Tenkwodo  ("Hall  of  Heavenly  Splen- 
dor"), likely  the  name  of  his  studio.  In  this  latter  manner  are  signed 
both  tsuba  on  Plate  LIV,  Figs.  1  and  2.  The  first  example  is  of 
shibuichi  with  reliefs  of  various  metals,  particularly  gold  and  shakudo, 
with  delicate  inlay  of  copper.  Murasaki  Shikibu,  the  famous  writer 
and  poet  of  the  tenth  century,  is  seen  standing  beneath  the  full  moon,  on 

*F.  Brinkley,  Japan  and  China,  Vol.  VII,  p.  321. 


■warsmr  of  mm  le 


<v*<«<!*eV**.- 


5 


■■i 


!A8Y 


'«*f***x 


The  Otsuki  School  149 

the  portico  of  the  temple  of  Ishiyama  overlooking  Lake  Biwa.  It  was 
at  this  famous  beauty  spot  that  she  is  said  to  have  written  the  novel 
Genji  Monogatari  (p.  58). 

In  comparison  with  most  of  the  portraits  on  nineteenth-century 
tsuba,  this  figure  is  heavy  and  lacking  in  grace.  Far  more  successful  is 
the  decoration  on  the  smaller  guard  (Fig.  2),  which  is  of  mokko  form 
and  made  from  iron  beautifully  patined  to  a  rich  brown  tone.  The  body 
of  the  snarling  tiger  standing  on  the  edge  of  a  rocky  cliff  is  carved  with 
strength  and  realism.  The  flashing  eye,  the  light  stripes  of  the  animal's 
coat,  and  the  bamboo  sprouts  at  his  feet  are  all  inlaid  in  gold,  so 
sparingly  and  tastefully  employed  as  to  produce  a  rich  effect.  The 
gently  moulded  rim  of  the  tsuba  and  the  sweeping  lines  denoting  wind 
which  he  has  carved  at  the  top  of  the  guard  show  Hidekuni's  mastery 
of  the  chisel.  On  the  reverse  side  there  has  been  flowingly  sculptured  a 
waterfall  plunging  over  rocks,  tinged  with  gold  inlay,  and  breaking  in 
curling  waves  with  gold  flecks  of  foam. 

Takechika  is  the  name  of  an  artist  who  is  placed  by  some  authorities 
among  the  members  of  the  Otsuki  school.  Although  S.  Hara  lists  him  in 
his  record  of  tsuba  masters,  no  information  is  given  as  to  his  training. 
We  simply  know  that  he  lived  in  Kyoto  in  the  middle  of  the  nineteenth 
century,  for  two  tsuba  made  by  him  are  dated  in  1862.  One  is  in  the 
collection  of  V.  Essen  in  Hamburg;  the  other,  in  the  Dansk  Kunstin- 
dustrimuseum  in  Copenhagen.  There  are  four  tsuba  in  this  Museum, 
which  are  signed  Takechika.  One  of  shibuichi,  adorned  with  a  goose 
flying  over  a  tossing  sea,  is  inscribed  Issai  Jungetsu  ("Intercalary 
month")  Jinjutsu  ("year  of  the  dog")  ;  that  is,  1863.  A  second  guard 
of  shibuichi,  upon  which  are  swallows,  in  relief  of  shakudo  and  silver 
flying  near  a  cherry-tree,  is  signed  Takechika  Issai  Koji  ("Retired 
Scholar").  The  name  Genissai  is  carved  upon  the  third  tsuba,  which  is 
in  the  form  of  the  bag  of  Daikoku,  god  of  wealth.  S.  Hara  records 
that  Takechika  bore  the  titles  of  Tsushima  no  Kami,  Hogen,  and  Niudo. 
A  fourth  honorary  appellation  is  inscribed  on  a  tsuba  in  this  collection 
(Plate  LIV,  Fig.  3).  It  reads,  Shiba  Yamashiro  Daijo  ("Feudal  chief 
of  Shiba  in  Yamashiro").  This  guard,  which  is  heavy  and  made  entirely 
of  silver,  is  carved  to  represent  two  carp  tied  together  by  bamboo  twigs 
which  are  inserted  through  the  gills  and  pass  through  the  mouths.  The 
design  immediately  recalls  the  Chinese  girdle  ornaments  of  jade  repro- 
duced and  fully  described  in  B.  Laufer's  "Jade"  (pp.  217-219).  We 
are  told  therein  that  this  design  symbolizes  mutual  harmony  between 
spouses  and  friends.  The  fish  of  the  girdle  ornament  are  tied  together 
with  a  branch  of  willow  which  it  was  customary  to  give  to  a  friend  on 


150  Japanese  Sword-Mounts 

parting.  Thus  the  significance  of  the  Chinese  design  reads,  "though 
parted  we  shall  remain  friends."  On  this  tsuba  the  two  carp  are  tied 
together  by  bamboo  twigs.  This  occurrence  would  lead  us  to  think  that 
the  design  on  this  Japanese  tsuba  refers  rather  to  the  brave  spirit  of  the 
carp,  than  to  the  idea  of  harmonious  association.  This  fish  is  called  the 
samurai  fish  for  two  reasons ;  first,  because  it  lies  passive  and  immovable 
when  its  quivering  live  flesh  is  sliced  off  for  a  delicacy,  just  as  the  true 
samurai  endures  his  wounds  unflinchingly ;  second,  because  it  swims  up 
the  waterfall,  sturdily  facing  the  strong  current  and  overcoming  all 
obstacles.  The  latter  interpretation  comes  directly  from  the  Chinese 
legend  of  the  carp  which,  swimming  up  the  cataract  of  the  Yellow  River, 
passes  the  Dragon  Gate,  and  finally  becomes  a  dragon  itself.  At  the 
boy's  festival  (tango),  which  occurs  on  the  fifth  day  of  the  fifth  month  in 
Japan,  there  are  to  be  seen  on  the  top  of  the  houses  wherein  boys  dwell, 
paper  carps  attached  to  bamboo  poles.  "This  swimming-up  the  water- 
fall is  very  prettily  suggested  by  the  actual  symbol ;  for  the  paper  fish, 
tied  by  the  head  to  the  summit  of  a  tall  bamboo  pole,  indeed  appears  to 
be  swimming  up  the  bamboo  (take  in  Japanese  which  by  a  play  on  the 
words  is  made  to  signify  the  waterfall  or  taki)."1  The  emblem  of 
bravery  and  courage,  here  suggested  by  the  association  of  the  carp  with 
the  bamboo  (take),  naturally  is  most  significant  as  the  basis  of  a  decora- 
tion for  a  sword-mount.  Takechika  has  demonstrated  to  the  full  his 
glyptic  skill  in  the  detailed  carving  of  this  tsuba.  The  firm,  slippery 
bodies  of  the  fishes  have  been  remarkably  reproduced,  while  the  dorsal 
fins  lie  in  rippling  soft  lines  on  either  edge,  thereby  forming  the  rim  of 
the  guard.  , 

The  second  of  the  three  great  moderns,  Haruaki  or  Shummei  Hogen, 
has  given  a  large  portion  of  his  biography  on  the  back  of  a  kozuka  which 
is  in  the  Naunton  collection  (No.  2180,  p.  159).  The  translation  there 
given  by  H.  Joly  of  this  interesting  inscription  reads  as  follows :  "In 
the  dog  year  of  KySwa  (1802)  I  began  to  work  and  signed  Shunnin; 
in  Bunkwa  (1804-17),  I  took  the  name  Shummei;  in  Bunsei  (1818-29), 
I  was  given  the  title  Hokyo,  and  was  later  raised  to  Hogen.  Afterwards 
I  travelled  like  a  cloud,  sometimes  to  sing  at  Matsushima  in  the  snow; 
at  other  times  I  rested  in  Nagasaki  to  admire  the  moon,  and  my  name 
was  not  always  the  same.  Now  it  is  Tempo,  the  ox  year  (1841),  on  the 
banks  of  the  Sumida  River."  Signed  "Jippo  O  Shummei  Hogen."  Some 
of  the  other  names  to  which  Haruaki  refers  are  listed  by  S.  Hara:2 
Bunzo  or  Chuzo,  Sho,  Nakatsukasa,  Haruzumi,  Getsuo,  Sanzo,  Ftiko, 

'Jiro  Harada,  Go  Sekku  (Transactions  of  Japan  Soc,  Vol.  IX,  p.  197). 
"Die  Meister  der  japanischen  Schwertzierathen,  p.  14. 


«HBSnY0F!Jj2li»Si.i™' 


Haruaki  Hogen  151 

Jippo-Kusha,  and  Taio.  Fiiunsanjin  is  a  name  added  to  the  list  by  P. 
Vautier.1 

Haruaki  of  the  Kono  family  lived  between  the  years  1786  and  1859, 
and  was  followed  by  many  pupils,  most  of  whose  names  began  with  the 
character  aki.  As  mentioned  before,  Haruaki  was  a  pupil  of  Yanagawa 
Naoharu,  who,  as  may  be  remembered,  was  trained  in  the  Yokoya  school. 
In  the  excellent  character  of  Haruaki's  chiselling  in  katakiribori,  the 
influence  of  Yokoya  Somin  is  clearly  to  be  seen,  while  in  his  reliefs  there 
is  much  that  suggests  the  methods  of  the  Goto  school.  He  worked  with 
equal  skill  in  these  processes,  and  accomplished  many  of  his  most  deco- 
rative effects  in  flat  inlay.  His  subjects  for  the  most  part  are  illustrations 
of  the  shichifukujin,  of  sages,  poets,  or  characters  taken  from  popular 
legends.  Mount  Fuji  captured  his  imagination,  and  is  beautifully  inter- 
preted on  the  long  fields  of  certain  kozuka  and  kogai.  The  upright 
decorations  on  the  two  kozuka  in  this  collection  (Plate  LV,  Figs.  1-2) 
illustrate  the  three  methods  of  applying  design.  That  in  Fig.  1  is  of  iron 
adorned  with  a  design  applied  in  low  reliefs  of  gold  and  silver.  The 
picture  represents  the  exterior  of  a  house  near  which  a  plum-tree  is 
growing.  That  it  is  the  time  of  the  New  Year  may  be  discovered  by  the 
shimenawa  visible  beneath  the  roof  and  by  the  charm  placed  beneath 
the  eaves  at  the  extreme  right.  This  consists  of  the  head  of  a  sardine 
(iwashi)  impaled  upon  a  branch  of  holly  (hiragi).  Two  demons  who 
have  been  exorcised  by  the  oni  yarai  ceremony  (p.  96)  are  studying  the 
charm,  which  is  said  to  so  intimidate  them,  that  they  will  not  re-enter 
the  house.  One  of  the  demons  cautiously  stretches  his  three-fingered 
hand  toward  the  prickly  leaves.2 

On  the  other  kozuka  (Plate  LV,  Fig.  2),  which  is  of  shakudo,  the 
design  is  brought  out  by  kebori,  flat  inlay,  and  high  relief.  Haruaki  has 
here  given  a  demonstration  of  the  Sambaso  dance  (p.  124).  The  per- 
former, wearing  the  mask  of  an  old,  bearded  man  with  white  tufted 
eyebrows,  is  crowned  by  the  tall-ridged  hat,  and  holds  behind  his  head 
in  one  hand  the  open,  folding  fan, — two  of  the  accessories  necessary  in 
this  performance.  The  bell  rattle  (suzu)  is  in  his  left  hand,  and  may 
be  seen  projecting  beyond  his  lifted  knee.  His  robe  is  adorned  with  the 
pine,  symbol  of  longevity,  inlaid  and  carefully  etched  in  gold.  The  lips 
of  the  mask  are  made  of  red  copper,  the  tying  cord  is  gold,  and  the 
whole  is  realistically  carved  in  high  relief. 

1  Japanische  Stichbliitter  und  Schwertzierathen,  Sammlung  G.  Oeder,  No. 
1237- 

"For  origin  of  this  charm,  see  H.  Joly,  Legend  in  Japanese  Art,  p.  50. 


152  Japanese  Sword-Mounts 

Very  often  tsuba  made  by  Haruaki  are  found  to  be  decorated  on  one 
side  in  relief,  while  the  other  side  is  a  masterful  bit  of  katakiribori ; 
such  is  the  case  in  the  two  tsuba  herein  illustrated.  The  object  in  Fig.  3 
(Plate  LV)  is  of  copper.  The  rim  is  slightly  raised  and  irregular,  and 
the  field  is  covered  over  with  a  fine  ishime  carving  in  which  this  master 
excelled.  A  rollicking  portrait  of  Daikoku,  one  of  the  shichifukujin,  is 
sculptured  in  high  relief  of  shibuichi  on  the  obverse  side  of  the  guard. 
Backed  by  a  golden  nimbus  he  stands  on  a  cloud  from  which  ancient 
coins  of  various  types  are  dropping.  The  largest  of  these  is  of  the  form 
known  as  oban,  and  is  inscribed,  as  was  customary,  Ju  ryo  ("10  ryo") 
Goto  (name  of  the  superintendent  of  the  mint).1 

Daikoku,  god  of  wealth  and  probably  the  most  popular  of  the 
shichifukujin  is  a  Brahmanic  deity,  who  had  been  added  to  the  Buddhist 
pantheon  in  India,  and  therewith  introduced  into  Japan.  He  represents 
Mahakala  ("the  black  god"),  so  called  from  the  color  of  his  image  which 
it  was  customary  to  rub  with  oil.  "Mahakala  is  the  protector  of  realms 
and  peoples,  freeing  them  from  disorder  and  other  calamities."2  Daikoku 
is  usually  represented  with  rice  bales  which  signify  the  wealth  of  the 
realm.  From  the  invasion  of  rats,  who  are  frequently  pictured  with  him, 
he  is  kept  busy  guarding  his  treasure.  The  attributes  of  the  jewel  and 
the  magic  hammer,  with  the  futatsu  or  mitsu-tomoye  (p.  43)  painted 
upon  the  ends,  are  said  to  have  been  allotted  to  him  by  Kobodaishi. 
Both  of  these  emblems  he  holds  in  his  hands  in  this  portrait  by  Haruaki. 
The  full  inscription  on  the  guard  reads:  Haruaki  Hogen  (kakihan) 
tameni  Junshindo  shujin  ("Made  for  the  lord  of  Junshindo"). 

Figures  1  and  2  on  Plate  LVI  reproduce  the  two  sides  of  a  tsuba  of 
karakane,  which  has  been  treated  with  an  acid  bath  so  as  to  produce  a 
"skin"  of  variable  colors,  iridescent  in  effect.  The  surface  decorations 
on  both  sides  are  beautiful  examples  of  finished  workmanship.  The  ob- 
verse is  a  fine  ishime,  while  the  reverse  is  so  treated  as  to  appear  to  be 
flecked  with  small  globules  scattered  over  the  entire  surface.  In  reliefs 
of  copper,  silver,  and  shakudo,  the  figures  of  the  Chinese  poet  Liu  Hwo- 
ching  (Japanese  Rinnasei)  and  his  young  attendant  stand  under  a  plum- 
tree,  watching  a  crane  feeding  from  a  dish  in  relief  of  copper.  The 
tree-trunk  and  branches  are  modelled  from  a  blending  of  shibuichi  and 
copper  tipped  with  blossoms  sculptured  from  silver.  The  expressive 
face  of  Rinnasei  is  carved  from  copper,  while  that  of  the  young  at- 
tendant is  of  silver.    On  the  reverse  a  weeping  willow-tree  is  boldly  cut 

*N.  Munro,  Coins  of  Japan,  p.  189. 

*F.  Dickins,  Seven  Gods  of  Happiness  (Transactions  of  Asiatic  Soc.  of 
Japan,  Vol.  VIII,  p.  438). 


FIELD  MUSEUM  OF  NATURAL  HISTORY. 


ANTHROPOLOGY,   VOL.   XVI.    PL.    LVI. 


TSUBA  BY  HARUAKI   HOGEN  (p.  152). 


CFU^tiSU 


Haruaki  Hogen  153 

in  katakiribori,  its  drooping  branches  breaking  with  gentle  lines  the  up- 
per portion  of  the  field.  Upon  the  tree  trunk  leans  an  aged  figure.  The 
portrait  of  the  old  man,  who  is  probably  Jurojin,  one  of  the  shichifuku- 
jin,  is  a  charming  piece  of  line-drawing  and  inlay.  Around  his  face  of 
silver  falls  the  head-covering  of  dark  blue  shakudo.  His  under  garment 
of  silver  is  visible  at  the  throat  and  knee;  the  remainder  is  hidden  by 
the  overdress  on  which  a  brocade  pattern  is  suggested  in  kebori.  At  his 
side  a  child  is  creeping  toward  a  blossoming  chrysanthemum-bush  which 
seems  to  bring  pleasure  to  the  older  man,  who  looks  admiringly  at  the 
flowers.  The  two  faces  of  this  tsuba  combine  to  make  it  an  example 
of  the  high  perfection  attained  by  certain  nineteenth-century  artists, 
and  a  rare  illustration  of  the  interesting  motives  of  decoration  which 
many  of  these  small  fields  encompass.  , 


XVIII.    GOTO  ICHIJO  AND  HIS  PUPILS 

F.  Brinkley1  has  forcefully  said,  "The  occidental  student  of 
Japanese  art  rivets  his  attention  on  the  work  of  the  painter  rather  than 
on  that  of  the  sculptor,  considers  the  pictorial  motive  in  preference  to 
the  glyptic  method.  Now,  as  a  rule  with  very  rare  exceptions,  the  dec- 
orative motives  of  Japanese  sword-furniture  were  always  supplied  by 
painters.  There  exist  innumerable  volumes  of  designs  from  the  brushes 
of  more  or  less  renowned  artists,  and  to  these  the  sculptor  habitually 
referred  for  inspiration.  All  classes  of  art-artisans  possessed  such  vol- 
umes, and  were  prepared  to  submit  them  for  a  customer's  choice  of 
motive.  Hence  it  is  that  the  Japanese  connoisseur  draws  a  clear  line  of 
distinction  between  the  decorative  design  and  its  technical  execution, 
Crediting  the  former  to  the  pictorial  artist,  the  latter  to  the  sculptor. 
The  enthusiastic  eulogies  and  poetic  comparisons  of  the  Soken  Kisho 
refer,  not  to  the  pictures  chiselled  on  sword-guards,  dagger-hafts,  or  hilt- 
tips,  but  to  the  manner  of  their  execution.  Michitaka,  in  common  with 
all  Japanese  connoisseurs,  detected  in  the  stroke  of  a  chisel  and  the  lines 
of  a  graving-tool  subjective  beauties  which  appear  to  be  hidden  from  the 
great  majority  of  western  dilettanti.  He  never  fell  into  the  mistake  of 
confusing  the  inspirations  supplied  by  the  decorative  artist  with  the 
technical  achievements  of  the  sculptor  himself.  However  elaborate 
may  be  the  decorative  design,  however  interesting  the  motive,  the 
Japanese  connoisseur  never  forgets  to  look  first  to  the  chisel  work.  By 
its  quality  alone  he  estimates  the  rank  of  a  specimen,  just  as  the  critic 
of  pictures  judges  the  authenticity  of  a  painting  by  the  force,  direct- 
ness, and  delicacy  of  the  brush  strokes.  This  becomes  more  easily  com- 
prehensible when  it  is  remembered  that  vigor  and  grace  of  line-drawing 
are  the  prime  essentials  of  fine  art  in  the  eyes  of  a  Japanese,  and  that 
his  almost  instinctive  appreciation  of  those  qualities  in  a  picture  equips 
him  with  a  special  standard  for  judging  the  excellence  of  sculpture,  such 
as  is  found  upon  sword-furniture.  The  Japanese  dogu-bori  used  thirty- 
six  principal  classes  of  chisel,  each  with  its  distinctive  name,  and  as  most 
of  these  classes  included  from  five  to  ten  sub-varieties,  his  cutting  and 
graving  tools  aggregated  about  two  hundred  and  fifty.  This  fact  alone 
suffices  to  suggest  the  delicacy  and  elaborateness  of  his  work." 

*Japan  and  China,  Vol.  VII,  p.  228. 
154 


Goto  Ichijo  155 

On  first  meeting  with  a  piece  from  the  chisel  of  Goto  Ichijo,  though 
the  decorative  motive  itself  almost  always  commands  admiration,  it  is 
the  texture  of  the  surface  metal  and  the  exquisite  carvings  of  the  reliefs 
on  the  mount  which  make  the  deepest  impression.  There  were  many 
remarkable  craftsmen  among  the  Goto  artists  in  the  eighteenth  and  nine- 
teenth centuries,  but  there  was  none  who  perfected  the  individual  style 
and  worked  at  one  and  the  same  time  with  such  precision  and  grace  as 
did  Ichijo,  the  artist,  who  is  generally  placed  with  Natsuo  and  Haruaki 
Hogen  to  form  the  triumvirate  of  the  "three  great  moderns."  The 
mounts  made  by  the  "sixteen  masters,"  even  up  to  the  time  of  Hojo, 
who  died  in  1856,  and  who  was  the  last  direct  descendant  of  the  line, 
continued  to  be  formal  and  stiff.  The  finest  pieces  are  almost  without 
exception  made  of  shakudo  with  nanako  ground  and  ornamented  with 
reliefs  of  gold  or  silver.  Ichijo,  on  the  contrary,  seldom  used  nanako 
and  to  a  large  extent  preferred  the  carefully  patined  background  of 
brown  iron  for  many  of  his  choicest  reliefs.  When  employing  shakudo 
and  shibuichi  as  the  ground  metals,  he  often  so  treated  them  as  to  gain 
novel  effects,  boldly  gouging  out  his  designs  or  chiselling  away  patches 
so  to  produce  a  roughened  effect  hitherto  generally  seen  only  on  iron 
tsuba. 

Born  in  1789,  Ichijo  was  a  son  of  Kenjo,  who  was  a  direct  descend- 
ant of  the  seventh  master  of  the  Goto  Shirobei  family,  though  himself 
not  one  of  the  noted  sixteen  masters.  Ichijo  lived  to  the  age  of  eighty- 
seven,  dying,  as  seems  fitting  for  the  last  great  artist  of  the  Goto  family, 
in  1876,  the  very  year  in  which  the  samurai  had  to  relinquish  the  privi- 
lege of  wearing  his  two  swords.  After  this  period,  the  new  order  of 
things  came  in  so  rapidly  as  to  sweep  away  much  of  the  art  which  had 
occupied  almost  all  of  the  greatest  artists  in  metal  work  for  five  centu- 
ries. Brinkley1  states  that,  when  only  nineteen  years  of  age,  Ichijo 
was  commissioned  to  make  a  set  of  mounts  for  the  sword  of  the  emperor 
Kokaku.  He  succeeded  so  well  that  he  received  the  title  Hokyo  to- 
gether with  a  reward  of  twenty  pieces  of  silver  and  five  bundles  of  silk. 
At  thirty- four  he  was  called  to  Yedo  by  the  shogun,  and  there  received 
a  house  and  perpetual  pension  of  ten  rations,  after  which  he  attained  the 
highest  rank,  that  of  Hogen.  He  occasionally  signed  his  productions 
with  the  following  names:  Hachirobei  (a  name  used  by  Kenjo), 
Mitsuyuki,  Mitsuyo,  Ichii,  Muryu,  and  Hakuo. 

There  are  two  tsuba  by  Ichijo  in  this  collection.  One  of  small  size 
(6  cm  in  length)  is  inscribed,  "Goto  Ichijo  Hogen,  at  seventy-five  years 

\fapan  and  China,  Vol.  VII,  p.  299. 


156  Japanese  Sword-Mounts 

of  age,  by  request  made  this  of  sokanagu  (an  alloy)  in  kebori."  Within 
the  slightly  raised  rim  the  artist  has  etched  sprays  of  Lespedeza  (hagi) 
and  flowering  stalks  of  Valeriana  officinalis  (ominameshi) .  The  alloy 
from  which  the  tsuba  is  made  is  of  gray  color  and  lacks  the  beautiful 
sheen  of  shibuichi. 

The  other  tsuba  is  a  much  more  important  example  of  Ichijo's  work 
(Plate  LVII,  Fig.  1).  It  is  the  smaller  of  a  pair  of  sword-guards  made 
for  a  dai-sho.  The  larger  companion  tsuba  of  the  same  form  and  a  cor- 
responding decoration  is  in  the  Museum  of  Art  at  Toledo,  Ohio.  The 
inscription  on  that  tsuba  reads,  "Made  by  Hakuo  in  early  autumn  of  the 
tiger  year  (seventh)  of  Kaei ;"  that  is,  1854  (Hakuo  saku  Kaei  shichi 
toratoshi  moshu).  The  small  tsuba  herein  reproduced  is  inscribed, 
"Made  by  Hakuo  at  Tobu"  (Hakuo  saku  Tobu  oite).  Both  of  these 
inscriptions  are  written  in  cursive  and  the  kakihan  (Plate  LXI,  Fig.  10) 
on  the  larger  one  is  distinctly  different  from  that  which  usually  fol- 
lows Ichijo's  name.  A  specimen  in  the  Naunton  Collection  (No.  336) 
also  bears  this  cursively  written  seal. 

The  tsuba  under  consideration,  like  its  larger  companion,  is  of  iron, 
and  is  of  mokko  form.  It  will  be  noticed  that  by  that  time  ( 1854)  the 
early  mokko  form,  which  was  decidedly  quadrilobate  (Plate VIII,  Fig.  1), 
had  been  modified  until  it  had  become  almost  rectangular  in  outline 
with  a  slight  indentation  near  each  of  the  four  corners.  On  the  larger 
tsuba  (in  Toledo  Museum  of  Art)  there  are,  in  relief  of  silver  and  gold, 
cherry-blossoms  whose  petals  are  falling  among  snow-flakes.  On  this 
smaller  guard  the  flowers  are  those  of  the  plum.  They  are  likewise 
sculptured  from  silver  with  golden  stamens  and  inlaid  in  relief,  as  is  the 
crescent  moon  on  the  reverse  side  of  the  guard.  The  snow-crystals  of 
various  forms  are  scattered  over  the  entire  field  which  is  patined  to  a 
chocolate  brown  color  and  a  texture  of  wax-like  malleability.  In  some 
cases  the  delicate  snow-flakes  are  inlaid  in  silver;  the  majority,  however, 
are  reproduced  in  hammer-work.  '  Occasionally  only  one-half  of  the 
crystal-form  is  clearly  cut,  while  the  remainder  is  only  suggested  and 
seems  to  be  melting  away  under  our  very  eyes.  It  may  be  that  the  appli- 
cation of  these  delicate  designs  was  accomplished  with  tools  on  which  the 
entire  crystal  form  had  been  wrought  in  cameo  as  in  the  blind  tooling 
used  on  book-binding  or  any  leather  work.  This  would  in  no  way  take 
away  from  the  difficulties  encountered  in  order  to  make  the  tsuba,  for 
the  perfecting  of  such  tools  would  only  be  undertaken  by  a  master. 
Several  times  did  Ichijo  use  this  poetic  design  of  blossoms  and  snow- 
flakes  for  the  decoration  of  sword-mounts.  The  large  tsuba  by  him  which 


Cf  u^^lu:°"- 


<z<x?s?*&**** 


Goto  Ichijo  and  His  Pupils  157 

is  reproduced  by  S.  Hara,1  though  of  brown  bronze,  is  adorned  with 
cherry-blossoms  and  snow-flakes  beneath  a  crescent  moon  of  gold.  Again, 
the  same  design  appears  on  a  tsuba  owned  by  M.  Garbutt  and  repro- 
duced by  H.  Joly.2  It  is  of  shibuichi  and  copper,  mi-parti  (back  and 
front)  and  inlaid  with  crystals  and  cherry-blossoms.  On  this  guard, 
which  is  dated  "third  year  of  Tempo"  (that  is,  1832) ,  the  crystals  are  all 
in  relief.  A  third  tsuba  on  which  this  design  appears  on  a  more  minute 
scale,  is  of  shakudo,  and  is  in  the  collection  of  G.  Naunton  (No.  334). 
A  fourth  in  the  W.  Behrens  collection  (No.  2019)  is  of  shakudo  and 
decorated  solely  with  snow-crystals  in  hammer-work. 

Characteristic  of  the  best  work  of  the  Goto  school  is  the  fuchikashira 
(Plate  LVII,  Fig.  2),  which  is  signed  "Goto  Ichijo  Hokyo."  It  is  of 
shakudo  with  nanako  disposed  in  straight  lines  and  adorned  with  sprays 
and  blossoms  of  the  peony  (botan),  in  relief  of  gold  with  sparing  inlays 
of  copper  on  the  shakudo  foliage.  Though  formal  to  a  certain  degree, 
there  is  evidenced  on  this  piece  the  graceful  handling  and  placing  of  the 
decorative  motive  which  make  for  much  of  the  charm  of  Ichijo's  mounts. 

Goto  Ichijo  had  a  large  number  of  pupils,  twenty-two  of  whom  are 
named  by  A.  Mosle3  in  his  genealogical  table  of  the  Goto  Family. 
Among  them  none  won  and  deserved  a  higher  reputation  than  Funada 
Yoshinaga  or  Ikkin,  as  he  sometimes  signed  his  mounts,  an  artist,  who 
died  in  1862.  He  was  an  adopted  son  of  Funada  Kwanjo  of  the  Iwa- 
moto  school,  but  received  his  training  from  Goto  Ichijo.  A  tsuba  made 
by  him  is  reproduced  side  by  side  with  the  two  pieces  of  his  master  which 
have  just  been  described  (Plate  LVII,  Fig.  3).  It  is  of  wakizashi  size 
and  made  of  shibuichi  with  a  patina  of  greenish  gray,  and  is  of  a  com- 
mon form  being  slightly  narrower  at  the  top  than  at  the  base.  The 
whole  surface  within  the  raised  rim  is  covered  over  with  a  fine  ishime, 
save  where  the  reliefs  are  placed  on  the  obverse,  and  a  small  portion  on 
the  reverse  which  represents  the  shore  line  at  Mio-no-Matsubara.  This 
famous  beauty  spot  is  suggested  in  nanako  with  reliefs  of  shakudo  and 
gold  in  the  form  of  gnarled  pine-trees,  at  whose  roots  curling  waves  of 
silver  break  and  cast  up  tiny  shells  of  gold  and  silver.  On  the  obverse 
at  the  top,  the  cone  of  Fujiyama  emerges  from  the  surrounding  fields. 
The  volcanic  ash  lying  along  the  sloping  sides  near  the  summit  is  repre- 
sented by  an  inlay  of  copper  of  soft  reddish  hue  broken  by  streaks  of 
silver  realistically  suggesting  deep  snow-patches.      At  the  foot  of  the 

'Die  Meister  der  japanischen  Schwertzierathen  (Plate  facing  p.  1). 
'Japanese  Art  and  Handicraft  (Plate  cxrv,  Fig.  279). 

*The  Sword  Ornaments  of  the  Goto  Shirobei  Family  (Transactions  of  the 
Japan  Society,  Vol.  VII,  p.  208). 


158  Japanese  Sword-Mounts 

mountain  floats  a  cloud  of  silver  on  which  is  standing  the  figure  of 
Fukurokuju  (p.  no),  holding  his  staff  in  his  left  hand  and  raising  his 
outspread  right  hand  as  he  gazes  upward  toward  the  peak.  This  minute 
representation  of  the  god  of  longevity,  happiness,  and  good  luck  is  en- 
tirely sculptured  from  gold;  his  upper  garment  rippling  backward  in 
the  wind  is  delicately  ornamented  in  kebori  suggesting  a  brocade  pattern. 

Fukui  Ichiju,  another  pupil  of  Ichijo,  is  the  maker  of  the  tsuba  on 
Plate  LVIII  (Figs.  1  and  2),  which  is  signed,  "Made  by  Fukui 
Ichiju  in  April,  second  year  (snake  year)  of  Meiji;"  that  is,  1869. 
(Fukui  Ichiju  Meiji  ni  mizunotono  mi  uzuki  saku).  Adopting  the  modi- 
fied mokko  form  with  the  raised  rim,  characteristic  of  his  master's 
guards,  Ichiju  has  produced  an  interesting  tsuba  from  brown  iron.  On 
the  reverse,  a  group  of  peasants  stand  in  a  rice-field,  two  gathering  the 
ripened  plants,  while  a  third  looks  up  toward  a  flying  cuckoo.  A  low 
hut  with  thatched  roof  stands  upon  the  small  plot  of  ground  at  the  end 
of  the  raised  path  which  outlines  the  rice-field.  A  spray  of  flowering 
Lespedeza  (hagi)  is  carved  in  relief  at  the  right  side  of  the  tsuba.  The 
inlays  and  reliefs,  such  as  the  scattered  clouds,  the  rice-plants,  the 
peasants'  head-coverings,  and  the  cords  (tasuki)  which  tie  back  the 
sleeves  are  of  gold.  On  the  reverse,  the  sole  decoration  is  a  poem 
paper  (tanzaku),  also  in  relief  of  gold.  On  this  is  inscribed,  Furyu  no 
hajime  ya  oku  no  ta  ue  uta  [by]  Ichi  Getsu.  It  is  impossible  to  give  a 
translation  of  this  delicate  sentiment  written  in  the  epigrammatic  form 
known  as  hokku.1  It  might  be  construed  thus :  "The  first  refined  pre- 
sentation of  the  rice-planting  song,"  and  was  doubtless  inspired  by  the 
sight  of  farmers  singing  at  their  planting  in  the  midst  of  a  peaceful  land- 
scape causing  one  to  put  aside  mercenary  interest  and  rejoice  in  the 
aesthetic  appeal  made  by  the  song  sung  in  the  midst  of  nature. 

The  mokko-formed  tsuba  (Plate  LVIII,  Fig.  3)  is  the  work  of 
Fukawa  Kazunori,  a  follower  of  Ichijo,  who  lived  until  1876. 
His  adopted  names  Ryiiashi  and  Koryiisai  help  to  distinguish  his 
sword-mounts  from  those  of  three  other  nineteenth-century  metal- 
workers, who  also  bore  the  name  Kazunori  and  wrote  it  in  the  same 
form.  There  is  in  the  collection  of  J.  O.  Pelton  a  tsuba  signed  Koryii- 
sai Kazunori,  which  is  thought  to  be  the  companion  piece  to  the  one 
under  discussion.2  Both  guards  are  of  shakudo ;  the  one  in  the  collection 
of  Field  Museum  has  a  rare,  dark  blue  color  and  a  patina  of  satin-like 
smoothness.     No  other  metals  are  used  to  enhance  the  tsuba;  the  bold 

1  Cf.  ChamberlatiN,  Japanese  Poetry,  pp.  147-260. 

*H.  Joly  and  K.  Tomita,  Japanese  Art  and  Handicraft,  p.  130. 


% 


mmm  bf '  i 


The  Followers  of  Goto  Ichijo  159 

and  simple  design  of  the  worm-eaten  mulberry-leaf  near  which  a  frog  is 
squatting  is  brought  out  in  a  medium  relief  and  carving  of  the  shakudo. 
H.  Joly1  mentions  the  fact  that  Fukawa  Kazunori  was  a  pupil  of 
Hokusai.  Certain  of  his  designs  he  took  from  Tanyu  Hoin,  as  he  himself 
tells  us  on  a  tsuba  in  the  Gonse  collection.2  Tanyu,  who  lived  in  the 
seventeenth  century,  was  one  of  the  most  famous  artists  of  the  Kano 
school.  His  impressionistic  paintings  furnished  many  artists  in  metal- 
work  with  designs  which  they  sought  to  reproduce  on  the  limited  fields 
of  tsuba  or  kozuka. 

Such  is  true  of  the  decorative  motive  on  the  small  tsuba  for  a  tanto, 
which  may  be  studied  on  Plate  LIX,  Fig.  i.3  On  the  rim  neatly  inlaid 
in  gold  is  the  acknowledgment  "From  a  design  by  Tanyu  Hoin,  sixty- 
nine  years  old"  (Tanyu  Hoin  gyonen  rokujuku  sai).  The  tsuba  is  signed 
on  the  obverse,  Goto  Set  i  (kakihan).  On  the  reverse  is  written,  "On 
a  spring  day  of  the  year  of  the  rat";  that  is,  1864  (Kinoene  shunjitsu). 
Though  evidently  unknown  to  S.  Hara,  and  not  listed  among  the  Goto 
by  A.  Mosle,  Goto  Seii  is  placed  by  H.  Joly4  among  the  followers  of 
Ichijo.  The  design  on  this  tsuba  of  shakudo  is  inlaid  in  reliefs  of  vari- 
ous metals.  The  silver  moon  (tsuki)  near  the  raised  rim  is  surrounded 
by  a  feathery  cloud  reproduced  by  the  inlay  of  minute  flakes  of  gold 
which  spread  over  the  reverse  side  of  the  tsuba.  On  the  obverse  side, 
below  at  the  right,  is  a  small  hare  (usagi),  sculptured  from  gray  shi- 
buichi,  with  eyes  of  silver.  It  crouches  near  brown  bamboo-leaves, 
carved  from  copper  and  laden  with  dew-drops  in  gold.  On  the  reverse 
two  unfolded  fern  sprouts  (waraji)  in  relief  of  green  gold  complete  this 
simple  presentation  of  the  popular  subject  tsuki  ni  usagi. 

,  "The  hare  in  Japanese  pictures  is  nearly  always  represented  in  asso- 
ciation with  a  full  moon.  This  connection  of  ideas,  illustrated  also  in  the 
name  sason  ('the  leaping  one'),  which  denotes  the  moon  in  Sanskrit  in- 
scriptions, is  of  very  ancient  date,  and  is  supposed  to  have  been  suggested 
by  a  fancied  resemblance  between  the  form  of  the  animal  and  the  out- 
line of  certain  marks  visible  upon  the  disk  of  our  satellite.  In  Taoist 
legends  the  hare  is  also  placed  in  the  moon,  and  is  represented  as  en- 
gaged in  pounding  with  pestle  and  mortar  the  drugs  that  compose  the 
elixir  of  life. 


*H.  Joly  and  K.  Tomita,  Japanese  Art  and  Handicraft,  p.  130. 

*S.  Hara,  Die  Meister  der  japanischen  Schwertzierathen,  p.  47. 

*The  same  design  evidently  formed  the  basis  for  the  decoration  of  a  brass 
guard  in  this  collection,  which  is  signed  with  the  seal  of  Yoshiyuki  (see 
Plate  lxi,  Fig.  II). 

*Sword  Fittings  in  the  Naunton  Collection,  No.  410. 


160  Japanese  Sword-Mounts 

"Many  curious  superstitions,  some  of  Indian  origin,  attach  to  the 
hare  in  Sinico- Japanese  folk-lore.  Like  the  fox,  the  tortoise,  the  crane, 
and  the  tiger,  it  is  supposed  to  attain  a  fabulous  longevity — one  thousand 
years — and  to  become  white  at  the  end  of  one-half  of  its  term;  but  it 
is  neither  credited  with  supernatural  powers,  like  the  fox  and  tiger,  nor 
consecrated  as  an  emblem  of  long  life,  like  the  tortoise  and  crane."1 

One  also  recalls  the  Buddhist  legend,  one  of  the  birth  stories 
(Jdtaka)  in  which  the  hare  (Buddha)  casts  himself  into  the  fire  in  order 
to  feed  the  Brahman.  As  a  reward  for  his  sacrifice,  the  hare  was  trans- 
ported to  the  moon.  , 

Many  of  the  contemporaries  and  followers  of  Goto  Ichijo  excelled  in 
the  making  of  beautiful  fuchikashira  and  kozuka.  One  of  the  most 
original  and  at  the  same  time  accomplished  pupils  was  Araki  Tomei, 
known  also  as  Shogintei  and  Ginshotei.  His  minutely  carved  reliefs 
representing  millet  heads  generally  made  from  gold  and  placed  upon  a 
shakudo-nanako  ground,  are  among  the  most  desirable  examples  of 
middle  nineteenth-century  sword-mounts.  Goto  Mitsuyasu,  whom 
S.  Hara  places  in  the  nineteenth  century  and  A.  Mosle  in  the  eighteenth 
century,  is  the  author  of  the  fuchikashira  (Plate  LIX,  Fig.  2)  of 
shakudo.  On  the  clamp  a  pheasant  in  relief  of  gold,  copper  and  shakudd 
stands  near  blooming  plants  of  the  chrysanthemum  (kiku)  and  violet 
(sumire)  delicately  chiselled  from  various  metals.  On  the  kashira,  a 
sparrow  (of  copper,  with  breast  of  silver)  clings  to  a  bare  twig  beneath 
which  are  sprays  of  chrysanthemum  flowers.  Hashimoto  Isshin,  a  pupil 
of  Ichijo,  who  lived  until  1896,  is  the  name  inscribed  upon  another 
shakudo-nanako  fuchikashira,  which  is  adorned  with  sprays  of  garden 
pinks  over  which  swallows  are  flying. 

The  object  in  Fig.  3  on  Plate  LIX,  though  signed  Ichijo,  is  thought 
to  be  the  product  of  one  of  that  master's  pupils.  It  is  interesting  to 
compare  the  relief  on  this  piece  with  that  on  the  kozuka  on  Plate  XIII, 
Fig.  4.  While  the  latter  mount  is  adorned  with  a  sculpturing  of  the 
Ni-6  with  tightly  compressed  lips,  generally  interpreted  as  represent- 
ing an  incarnation  of  Brahma  (see  p.  64),  the  clamp  on  this  fuchi- 
kashira (Plate  LIX,  Fig.  3)  is  ornamented  with  the  Ni-6  with  open 
mouth,  who  is  said  to  represent  the  incarnation  of  Indra.  As  in  the  case 
of  the  relief  on  the  kozuka,  copper  has  here  been  employed  to  reproduce 
the  muscular  figure  of  the  temple  guardian.  Gold  has  been  utilized  for 
the  lower  garment  and  the  floating  shoulder-drape.  The  two  artists  must 
have  found  the  inspiration  for  their  designs  at  the  same  source,  probably 

*W.  Anderson,  Catalogue  of  Japanese  and  Chinese  Paintings  in  the  British 
Museum,  p.  257. 


■BsmruFvi-ac"**;-.'...^ 


cv?;^?  ./f>u<vot 


FIELD  MUSEUM  OF  NATURAL  HISTORY. 


ANTHROPOLOGY,   VOL.   XVI,    PL.   LX. 


TSUBA  BY  MlYATA  NOBUHISA  (p.  161). 


•mwnYffuaisi.L;:^v 


t<     ^^v'^»^tW> 


The  Followers  of  Goto  Ichijo  161 

a  noted  pair  of  drawings  or  two  sculptured  figures  at  the  entrance  of 
a  temple. 

Before  closing  this  necessarily  incomplete  survey  of  the  schools  of 
metal  workers  (for  only  those  members  represented  in  this  collection 
have  been  touched  upon,  scores  remaining  whose  work  is  equally  valu- 
able and  interesting) ,  one  more  piece  will  be  added  to  demonstrate  once 
again  the  purely  decorative  quality  of  the  sword-mounts  of  the  late 
Tokugawa  period,  just  prior  to  the  time  of  the  relinquishment  of  the 
samurai's  valued  weapon.  The  tsuba  (Plate  LX)  signed  Nobuhisa  saku 
("made  by  Nobuhisa")  is  literally  a  piece  of  jewelry.  Such  sword- 
mounts  are  the  nearest  approach  to  our  interpretation  of  that  term; 
for  rings,  buckles,  or  similar  personal  ornaments  were  never  worn  in 
Japan  prior  to  the  influx  of  European  trade. 

Miyata  Nobuhisa  was  a  pupil  of  Miyata  Nobukiyo,  who  in  turn  had 
studied  under  Goto  Mitsuyasu.  On  another  tsuba  in  this  collection,  he 
has  inscribed,  together  with  his  full  name,  three  characters  which  read 
"Ryujusai."  That  tsuba  is  of  bronze  ornamented  with  a  plum-tree  in 
relief  laden  with  snow,  the  latter  being  reproduced  by  silver  inlay. 
Sparrows  realistically  sculptured  from  copper  escape  from  a  hawk  and 
seek  safety  in  snow-laden  rushes  on  the  reverse  side.  In  the  tsuba  on 
Plate  LX,  Nobuhisa  has  combined  the  two  metals,  silver  and  shakudo, 
to  give  the  impression  of  day  and  night.  The  day  is  represented  by  a 
glimpse  of  the  bay  of  Suruga  at  Mio-no-Matsubara,  the  pine-clad  point 
celebrated  both  in  poetry  and  art.  Broken  clouds  tinged  with  gold,  inlaid 
in  imitation  of  nashiji  lacquer,  float  over  the  bay.  Beneath  the  pines 
carved  from  shakudo  and  copper,  two  boats  are  moored  near  the  shore. 
From  this  point  of  land  one  of  the  finest  views  of  Fuji  may  be  obtained. 
The  matchless  mountain  is  pictured  on  the  obverse  side  of  the  tsuba  in 
relief  with  an  inlay  of  silver  to  represent  the  snow-covered  cone.  From 
the  dark  blue  shakudo  ground  it  rises  above  rolling  clouds  inlaid  in  relief 
of  gold,  partly  represented  in  the  solid  metal  and  partly  by  the  inlay  of 
tiny  flakes  which  sparkle  against  the  dark  background.  A  tossing  sea, 
carved  in  relief  from  the  shakudo,  breaks  over  the  lower  part  of  the 
tsuba,  the  waves  tossing  off  golden  flecks  of  foam.  At  the  left,  a  dragon 
is  boldly  emerging  from  the  waves  and  rising  through  clouds  toward 
the  mountain.  This  oft-repeated  motive  of  decoration  has  been  inter- 
preted as  suggesting  the  struggle  of  the  earthly  toward  the  ideal,  and 
again  as  symbolic  of  success  in  life.  Seldom  has  it  been  presented 
with  more  skill  than  on  this  tsuba  by  Nobuhisa.  The  writhing  form  of 
the  dragon  is  sculptured  with  great  care  from  gold,  the  scales  chiselled 


162  Japanese  Sword-Mounts 

so  clearly  as  to  appear  imbricated  and  in  motion.  The  flaming  append- 
age above  the  three-clawed  arm  is  made  of  red  copper,  and  is  a  brilliant 
touch  of  color  against  the  unusually  dark  blue  shakudo  field.  On  this 
tsuba  the  full  palette  of  the  nineteenth-century  artist  in  metal  work  is 
exposed;  the  style  of  the  ornamentation  is  typical  of  the  rich  Tokugawa 
period  wherein  luxurious  excesses  engulfed  to  a  very  large  extent  the 
purer  art  of  the  earlier  centuries. 


,      APPENDIX 

OBSERVATIONS  ON  THE  RESTORATION  OF  PATINA 

By  HENRY  W.  NICHOLS 
Associate  Curator  of  Geology 

The  patina  on  iron  Japanese  sword-guards  is  essentially  composed  of 
oxides  of  iron  combined  or  mixed  with  vegetable  oils.  Many  of  the 
lighter  colored  ones  contain  no  other  ingredient.  Others  are  colored  by 
the  addition  of  small  quantities  of  copper  salts,  sulphides  of  iron,  or 
vegetable  extractive  matters  which  darken  the  color.  The  original  form- 
ulas employed  by  the  Japanese  artisans  cannot  be  conveniently  used  for 
the  restoration  of  lost  patina,  as  the  time  consumed  is  inordinately  long. 
Much  labor  is  also  involved  in  numerous  polishings,  and  substances  are 
employed  not  readily  obtained  in  this  country.  A  study  of  these  pro- 
cesses suggested  that  their  essential  features  might  be  so  applied  as  to 
produce  results  in  a  reasonable  time  and  in  a  way  that  would  be  prac- 
tical under  Western  conditions.  Experiments  along  these  lines  were 
successful,  and  a  number  of  guards  were  treated.  With  the  experience 
gained  it  was  found  that  identical  results  could  be  secured  by  using  more 
modern  methods  of  oxidation  at  a  great  saving  of  time  and  labor  and 
with  more  certainty  of  results. 

Method  i. — One  of  the  first  successful  treatments  was  based  on  a 
Japanese  method  in  which  the  object  was  buried  in  moist  wood-ashes  in 
which  there  was  also  buried  a  bag  of  sulphur.  The  Japanese  removed 
the  guard  from  time  to  time,  and  polished  it  with  vegetable  oil  and 
reburied  it. 

To  secure  these  results  more  expeditiously  the  guard  is  first  cleaned 
by  boiling  in  cigar  ashes  and  water.  Then  a  bath  is  prepared  by  boiling 
a  mixture  of  cigar  ash  and  sulphur  in  water  until  the  solution  turns  yel- 
low and  emits  a  sulphide  odor.  The  specimen  suspended  on  a  cord  is  im- 
mersed in  this  for  an  hour,  then  removed  and  allowed  to  dry;  when 
dry,  it  is  immersed  for  another  hour,  and  the  treatment  repeated  until 
there  is  a  good  coat  of  rust.  The  guard  is  then  dried  and  polished  with  a 
bit  of  absorbent  cotton  or  muslin  which  is  made  slightly  greasy  with  olive 
oil  or  better  with  a  light  mineral  oil.  The  specimen  darkens  under  this 
treatment,  and  much  of  the  oxide  rubs  off.  The  polishing  is  continued 
with  dry  clean  cotton  or  muslin  until  no  more  rust  rubs  off".    The  speci- 

163 


164  Japanese  Sword-Mounts 

men  is  then  returned  to  the  bath,  and  the  treatment  is  repeated  as  often 
as  necessary.  In  from  two  weeks  to  a  month  many  of  the  guards  will 
take  a  good  patina,  of  a  moderately  dark  chocolate.  The  proportions  of 
sulphur  and  cigar  ash  are  not  given,  as  this  method  has  not  been  em- 
ployed long  enough  to  determine  the  best  proportions.  This  process 
works  well  with  most  specimens,  but  has  several  defects.  There  is  a 
rather  narrow  limit  to  the  colors  that  can  be  produced.  The  longer  the 
treatment,  the  darker  the  patina.  The  process  takes  too  much  time  and 
too  much  polishing.  On  many  specimens  the  rust  is  not  sufficiently 
adherent,  and  most  of  it  comes  off  when  polishing.  These  must  be 
treated  by  other  methods. 

Method  ii. — This  is  based  on  a  Japanese  method  using  plum  vinegar, 
verdigris,  and  other  materials.  To  prepare  the  bath,  make  two  liters  of 
five  per  cent  solution  of  acetic  acid,  add  nitric  acid  to  a  strength  of  two 
per  cent,  about  two  grams  of  potassium  nitrate,  ten  grams  of  copper 
sulphate,  and  a  small  quantity,  say  five  grams,  of  ferrous  sulphate. 
Clean  the  guard  by  boiling  in  a  weak  solution  of  caustic  potash  or  in 
cigar  ash  and  water.  Attach  a  copper  wire,  and  to  the  other  end  of  the 
wire  attach  an  electric  light  carbon.  Suspend  the  guard  and  the  light 
carbon  in  the  bath  and  leave  for  several  hours  over  night.  Dry  and 
polish  with  a  slightly  oiled  cloth,  and  repeat  treatment  as  necessary.  To 
darken,  immerse  in  a  glass  or  porcelain  vessel  in  a  dilute  solution  of 
yellow  potassium  sulphide  and  repolish.  It  takes  some  experience  to 
tell  how  long  to  leave  the  specimen  in  this  bath,  for  the  color  that  ap- 
pears first  is  much  darker  than  the  color  after  drying,  oiling,  and  polish- 
ing. If  the  color  is  too  dark,  it  may  be  lightened  by  the  careful  applica- 
tion of  the  blue  flame  of  a  bunsen  burner  which  oxidizes  the  sulphide. 
This  method  is  more  expeditious  than  the  other,  and  any  color  may  be 
obtained  by  it.  On  some  specimens  an  adherent  coating  will  not  form, 
and  these  cannot  be  treated  this  way.  This  treatment  will  not  injure  any 
alloy  inlays,  as  they  can  be  polished  bright  if  desired,  although  the  tar- 
nish they  assume  will  usually  be  near  their  original  patina. 

Method  hi. — By  this  method  which  departs  more  widely  from 
Japanese  practice,  the  same  patina  may  be  formed  more  expeditiously. 
The  guard  is  laid  on  a  clay  triangle  on  a  lampstand,  and  is  heated  from 
above  with  the  blue  flame  of  a  bunsen  burner  until  the  iron  hisses  when 
touched  with  the  moist  finger.  Then  a  two  to  five  per  cent  solution  of 
nitric  acid  containing  a  little  ferric  nitrate  is  rapidly  brushed  over  it 
until  a  sufficient  coating  is  produced,  or  until  experience  shows  that  it 
is  advisable  to  stop.     The  coating  is  then  further  heated  from  above 


Observations  on  the  Restoration  of  Patina  165 

with  the  bunsen  burner  to  decompose  the  nitrate  of  iron.  Then,  after 
the  specimen  is  partly  cool,  it  is  brushed  over  with  a  light  mineral  oil. 
After  it  is  completely  cool,  it  is  oiled  and  polished  with  a  soft  cloth. 
Frequently  this  is  all  that  is  necessary.  At  other  times  the  patina  is  too 
thin,  and  the  process  must  be  repeated,  or  an  oil  treatment  along  the 
lines  of  Method  IV  must  be  given.  This  produces  a  light  chocolate 
patina  in  most  cases.  To  darken  the  patina,  two  methods  are  available. 
A  continuation  of  the  oil  treatment  of  Method  IV  is  often  sufficient,  or 
a  sulphide  treatment  may  be  employed.  The  guard  is  immersed  in 
dilute  yellow  ammonium  sulphide  for  several  hours.  When  dried,  it  is 
cleaned  and  oiled  with  a  soft  cloth,  and  the  color  examined.  If  too  light, 
the  treatment  is  repeated.  If,  as  is  commonly  the  case,  it  is  too 
dark,  it  is  placed  on  a  clay  triangle  on  a  lampstand,  and  the  surface  is 
cautiously  oxidized  by  the  flame  of  a  bunsen  burner  until  the  desired 
color  is  obtained,  when  the  specimen  is  given  its  final  oiling  and 
polishing. 

It  is  not  as  difficult  as  it  seems  to  oxidize  the  proper  amount  of  sul- 
phide to  give  the  desired  color;  yet  it  is  a  matter  that  requires  some 
practice.  This  treatment  is  successful  with  most  specimens.  Occasion- 
ally one  will  be  found  that  will  not  form  an  adherent  coating,  and  some 
one  of  several  artifices  must  be  employed.  Perhaps  the  best  is  to  add  a 
small  quantity  of  sulphate  of  copper  to  the  acid.  If  care  is  used,  this 
method  may  be  employed  on  specimens  that  have  some  inlays  of  alloy, 
although,  if  there  is  much  inlay,  it  is  safer  to  employ  Method  II. 

Method  iv. — When  irons  are  free  from  inlay  of  other  metals,  they 
may  frequently  be  given  a  patina  by  a  simple  heat  and  oil  treatment. 
The  specimen  is  heated  on  a  clay  triangle  on  a  lampstand,  and  when  hot 
enough  to  cause  the  oil  to  smoke  freely,  it  is  brushed  over  with  a  light 
mineral  lubricating  oil.  The  oil  used  is  subjected  to  the  action  of  the 
bunsen  flame  which  is  adjusted  to  be  as  oxidizing  as  possible.  This 
evaporates  the  oil,  so  that  there  is  little  or  no  carbonized  residue  left, 
but  at  the  same  time  it  darkens  the  oxide  coating,  either  by  partially 
reducing  it;  or  by  changing  its  physical  condition.  It  also  causes  the 
patina  to  adhere  firmly.  The  color  may  be  adjusted  by  sulphide  treat- 
ment as  in  Method  III.  After  either  of  these  treatments,  several  oilings 
some  weeks  apart  are  needed  before  the  pores  are  so  filled  that  further 
rusting  does  not  occur.  The  guards  do  not  all  react  alike  to  treatment, 
and  the  process  must  be  varied  to  suit  individual  specimens  as  experience 
dictates. 

The  patina  produced  is  identical  with  the  original  patina.    The  body 


166  Japanese  Sword-Mounts 

is  oxide  of  iron  corroded  from  the  specimen  itself  and  combined  with  oil. 
Adhesion  and  evenness  of  coating  is  promoted  when  necessary  by  use  of 
copper  salts.  Color  is  modified  by  modifications  of  the  oil  treatments 
and  by  the  incorporation  of  small  quantities  of  sulphur.  A  Japanese 
method  of  darkening  color  by  use  of  the  tannins  and  extractive  matter 
of  tea  leaves  or  plum  vinegar  has  not  yet  been  successfully  applied.  By 
the  third  method,  with  a  little  practice,  it  is  often  possible  to  restore 
patina  to  a  scratch  or  other  small  injury  without  affecting  the  original 
patina  on  the  rest  of  the  specimen.  The  kind  of  oil  used  in  forming  the 
patina  and  in  the  later  care  of  the  specimens  is  a  matter  of  importance. 
The  Japanese  use  a  vegetable  oil.  A  vegetable  oil  of  corresponding 
qualities  which  is  readily  obtainable  in  this  country  undoubtedly  exists, 
but  has  not  yet  been  employed  here.  Cotton-seed  and  olive  oils  form  a 
gummy  surface,  and  injure  the  appearance  of  the  patina.  Very  satis- 
factory results  have  been  obtained  by  the  use  of  certain  mineral  oils. 
The  best  so  far  employed  are  the  lighter  grades  of  automobile  cylinder 
oil  and  pure  mineral  spindle  oils.  Oils  of  the  grade  of  sewing-machine 
oils  and  those  which  are  supposed  to  remove  rust  must  be  avoided. 


INDEX  OF  SIGNATURES  ON  SWORD-MOUNTS 


Descriptive  paragraphs  follow  names  of  artists  represented  in  the  Museum 
collections,  but  not  mentioned  in  the  text.  Asterisk  indicates  names  not  found  in 
record  compiled  by  S.  Hara. 


Aizu  W  &    52 

Akao  #  %     82 

Akasaka  #  WL   82 

*AkihirO  5J3  5/»  Pa'r  of  menuki  in  the  form  of  kirin  sculptured  from  gold, 
standing  on  clouds  of  copper,  shakudo,  and  shibuichi.  Dated 
"spring,  1847."     Cat.  No.  131386. 

Araki  |Jc  >fc   160 

*Arinari  Isseido  {£.  fi$t  — •  jic  ^  Kozuka  of  shibuichi.  A  blooming 
plum-tree  and  small  [bird  in  relief  of  gold,  silver,  and  copper. 
Cat.  No.  131387. 

Atsuoki  M  H  (Otsuki) 147 

*Bizan  ^  llj  Tsuba  of  iron,  quadrilobate.  On  each  side  four  of  the 
famous  Eight  Views  of  Omi  (Omi  Hakkei)  in  relief.     Cat.  No.  130782. 

Bosoken  iil  M,  $f  (Hamano  Noriyuki) 93 

BushQ  j£  ^H   99 

Chikan  %U  EH  (Nara  Toshinaga) 87 

Chikayuki  M  151  (Hamano)   96 

Chokuzui,  see  Hamano  Naoyuki 

Choshu  Jfc  irfi    roi 

Chubei  J&  ji^  f$J  (Iwamoto) 107 

*Chugo,  see  Mitsuyoshi 

Dairyusai  ifc  h!  3$f  (Otsuki  Mitsuoki) 146 

*Datoken  $tj  $&  $f"  Tsuba  of  iron  carved  in  hikone-bori  with  inlays 
of  gold.  Two  rishi,  Bukan  Zenji  with  a  tiger  and  Chinnan  evoking 
a  dragon  from  his  bowl.     Cat.  No.  1308 14. 

Denjo  flg  %k  (Goto) 63 

167 


1 68  Index  of  Signatures  on  Sword-Mounts 

Dennai  ff  ft  (Shoami) 57 

Donin  $t  tl  (Hirata) 128 

Echizen  j&l  f?I  83 

Echizen  no  daijo  j&  lift  ^C  W  (Ichinomiya  Nagatsune) 122 

Fujita  W-  ffl   (Motoharu) 130 

*FujitOshi  j$fc  ^'J  Tsuba  of  shakudo  with  reliefs  of  silver,  gold,  and  cop- 
per. On  obverse  Kwanyii  on  horseback.  On  reverse  Chohi  with  large 
battleaxe  (almost  identical  with  No.  2766  in  Naunton  Coll.  Signed: 
Fuji  Toshinaga).     Cat.  No.  130759. 

Fuko  JUL  T  (Haruaki  Hogen) 150 

Fukui  M  $r  (Ichiju) 158 

*Fukwansai  M»  WL  Hf  Tsuba  of  iron.  Spider  web  in  relief  of  iron  with 
large  spider  inlaid  in  copper.     Cat.  No.  130810. 

Funada  fl&  B9  (Ikkin  or  Yoshinaga) 157 

Furukawa  "6"  JM    107 

Furyuken  M,  ffl  $f  (Takase  Hisanaga) 131 

Fushimi  \K  H   53 

*Fuunsanjin  M  M  ill  A  (Haruaki  Hogen) 151 

Gaiundo  ^  SI  *3L  (Hamano  Noriyuki) 93 

Gakui  ^  I  or  f  M  (Nobuiye  I) 51 

Ganshoshi  &  3|£  -f-  (Ichinomiya  Nagatsune) 122 

Gantoshi  M.  ^  •&  (Ishiguro  Masahiro) 119 

*Garyuken  l$t  fl  $f  (Nara  Toshiyoshi) 92 

Genchin  7C  f£  (Furukawa) 107 

Gennojo  W.  3l  Ou  (Yukimitsu) 102 

*Genshosai  5£  l&  ^  (Hamano  Masaharu) 96 

Getsuo  H   m   (Haruaki  Hogen) 150 

*Gikoshi  ^  ^T  -?  (Ichinomiya  Nagayoshi) 122 

Ginshotei  ^  1&  2f£  (Araki  Tomei) 160 

*Goro  3l  HP  (Horiguchi)   100 

Goto  $£  $£   60 


Index  of  Signatures  on  Sword-Mounts  169 

Hagi  $c  101 

*Haiyo  Shiki  Sin  *f?  ffc  ~F  §|?  J|  Tsuba  of  shibuichi  made  after  a 
design  by  Yasuchika.  On  obverse  an  elephant  with  saddlecloth.  On 
reverse  a  long  inscription.     Cat.  No.  130656. 

Hakuhotei  fi   %  ^  (Konkwan) 107 

*Hakujusai,  see  Masamitsu 

Hakuo  ifi  H  (Goto  IchijS) 155 

Hamano  §£  Mf  92 

Hanryuken,  see  Sadanaka 

Haruaki  ^  ^  (Shummei  Hogen) no,  150 

Harunari  ^  Wt  (Hirata) 129 

*Harushima,  see  Nobumasa 

*Harutaka  Shoriken  ^  ^  ^  M  $f  Tsuba  of  shibuichi  with  reliefs 
of  copper,  silver,  and  gold.  Tobosaku  with  the  peach  of  immortality. 
Cat.  No.  130685. 

Haruzumi  ^  {£  (Haruaki  Hogen) 150 

*Hashimoto  Wi  4s*  (Isshin) 160 

*Hayashi,  see  Masamitsu 

Heianjo  ♦  55:  #&     55 

*Hideaki  Tokao  ^  1$  #&  ^  ^  Tsuba  of  shakudo.  Seated  tiger 
in  relief  of  shibuichi  and  gold  looks  up  toward  crescent  moon.  Cat. 
No.  13 1308. 

♦Hidekuni  ^r  M  (Otsuki) 148 

Hidemune  ^  ^  (Takamoto) 143 

*Hidenaga  ^  t^     Small  tsuba  of  iron.     In  relief  of  gold  and  shakudo, 
a  basket  of  egg  plants  and  a  sickle.    Cat.  No.  130854. 
Tsuba  of  iron,  aoi  form.    Two  dragon-flies  inlaid  near  the  raised  edge 
in  gold  and  shibuichi.    Cat.  No.  130786. 

Hideoki  ^  M  (Otsuki) 148 

Hidetomo  ^r  £l!  (Omori) 115 

Hikone  j§£  $L   77 

Hikoshiro  ^k  H   $5  (Hirata  Donin) 128 

*Hikozo  M  H   (Hirata  of  Higo) 79,  128 

Hirata  4*  ffl   79 


170  Index  of  Signatures  on  Sword-Mounts 

*Hiroaki  Jjh  *(■  Tsuba  of  iron  with  reliefs  of  copper,  silver  and  gold. 
Chinese  sage  Riuto  leaning  out  of  a  window  to  read  by  moonlight. 
Cat.  No.  130837. 

Hironaga  5i,  f^  (Uchikoshi) 137 

*Hironaga  Kusano  Jorantei  SI  il  ^  HP  ffl  ^  Tsuba  of  brass 
with  reliefs  of  shakudo,  silver  and  copper.  Three  salmon  swimming 
amid  reeds  in  a  swift  stream.     Cat.  No.  130745. 

*Hirosada  j/2,  M  Fuchikashira  of  copper.  On  the  kashira,  a  large  flying 
bat.  On  the  fuchi  three  autumn  plants,  in  relief  of  shakudo,  silver  and 
gold.  Signed  with  a  seal.  Cat.  No.  131408.  Listed  by  H.  Joly  and 
P.  Vautier  among  the  nineteenth  century  Myochin. 

Hirotoshi,  see  Uchikoshi  Hironaga 

Hiroyasu  5i»  M  (Uchikoshi) 139 

Hiroyoshi  31   &  (Uchikoshi) 141 

Hiroyuki  5Z,  B|  (Hamano) 92 

Hisakiyo  A  fpf  (Goto) 64 

Hisanaga  ^  #  (Takase  of  Mito) 131 

Hisanao  H  {!£  (Hamano) 95 

Hisanori  !K  M  (Omori) 116 

Hitotsuyanagi  —  ffl  (of  Mito) 130 

Hogen  &  $£ 97,  142,  150,  155 

Hojo  &  ^S  and  ~%  ^1  (Goto) 62 

HokyS  &  Wi    67,  150,  155 

*Horiguchi  M   P    100 

*Hosai  S^  ^  Tsuba  of  copper.  Chiselled  in  katakiribori,  a  demon  running 
from  falling  rain  and  lightning  flashes  inlaid  in  relief  of  gold.  Cat. 
No.  130709. 

*Hoshinsai  J?  M  $t  (Toshikage) 142 

*Hosonsai  H  ^  $£  (Tanaka  Masakage) , 143 

Hozui,  see  Hamano  Yasuyuki 

Hozui,  see  Hamano  Nobuyuki 

*Hyakukai  W  ^  Tsuba  of  brass  with  fine  ishime  ground;  reliefs  of 
shakudo  and  gold.  Taishun  cultivating  the  rocky  soil  is  assisted  by 
the  elephant  and  birds.     Cat  No.  130716. 

Ichii  —  ^  (Got5  Ichijo) J  55 


Index  of  Signatures  on  Sword-Mounts  171 

Ichijo  —  ^1  (Goto) 155 

*Ichijosai   —  ^  1§f   (Uchikoshi  Hironaga) 137 

Ichiju   —  $  (Fukui) 158 

Ichijusai  —  «|  1SF  (Masatsugu  of  Mito) 133 

*Ichimusai  —  ^  l£f  (Kanzawa  Mitsunaga)  Tsuba  of  iron  with 
reliefs  of  iron,  gold,  and  silver.  Two  sages  meeting  on  pine-clad  cliff. 
Cat  No.  131 189. 

Ichinomiya  —  ^    122 

Ichiryu,  see  Hitotsuyanagi 

Ichiryuken  —  $P  $f   (Iwama  Nobuyuki) 97 

*Ichiryushi  —  f|  -p  (Toshikage) 142 

Ichitoshi  Ryuo  — ■  jfc  ~f"  Hi  IJa  Tsuba  of  brass  with  reliefs  of 
silver  and  gold.  Herons  and  a  hawk  flying  over  waves.  Cat. 
No.  130718. 

Ichiunsai   —  M  3§f  (Nomura  Masayoshi) 66 

Ihosai  Jf  H  ^  (Hamano  Chikayuki) 96 

Ikkin  —  ^  (Funada  Yoshinaga) 157 

Imai,  see  Nagatake 

Inagawa  IS  JM    112 

*Ishikawa,  see  Seijo 

*Ishima,  see  Kiyokata 

Issai  —  3§F  (Otsuki  Takechika) 149 

IssandS  —  M  ^  (Joi) 87 

*Isseido,  see  Arinari 

*Isshin  —  3*    (Hashimoto) 160 

Ito  #  M   70 

Ittosai  —  to  *$r  (Teruhide) 1 13 

Iwama  &  fH    97 

Iwamoto  %k  4* 107 

Iyeyasu  ^  $c  (Nobuiye  I) 51 

Iyeyoshi  ^c  ]§  (Nobuiye  II) 51 

Izumi  no  Kami  |P  $L  ^P  (Koike  Yoshiro) 53 


172  Index  of  Signatures  on  Sword-Mounts 

Jakushi  pgf  ^   76 

Jimpo  H  "if  (Tsu) 66 

Jingo  ^  ^  (Shimizu  of  Higo) 80 

Jippo  Kusha  +   ~jj  &  &  (Haruaki  Hogen) 150 

Jochiku  fS\  V$  (Murakami) 127 

♦Jogetsusai  #D  B   3tP  (Uchikoshi  Hiroyoshi) 141 

Joi  ^  M  (Nara) 87 

*Jomei  Mori   j&O   :&   3?fc     Tsuba  of  brown  iron.     In  low  relief  Shoki  fol- 
lowing a  demon  who  hides  beneath  a  bridge.    Cat.  No.  131 146. 

*Jorantei,  see  Hironaga 

*Jounsai  #D  M  3$f  (Uchikoshi  Hironaga) 137 

Jowa  HI  ID  (Nara) 88 

Joyeiken  jfcn  ^  ff  (Tamagawa  Yoshihisa  I) 134 

Jucho  HI  J|  (Masatsune  II) 118 

*Jujiro  !?   ^C    ll|5  Tsuba  of  shibuichi  with  reliefs  of  gold  and  silver.     Two 
herons  near  a  stream.    Cat.  No.  13 1500. 

Jujo  H  ^§  (Goto) 62 

Jukokusai  #  #  ^  (Ishiguro  Masatsune  I) 117 

Juro,  see  Nagaaki  (Natsuo) 

*Jusan,  see  Tsujin 

Kakujusai  H»  H  $£  (Hamano  Naoyuki  and  Ishiguro  Masa- 

hiro) 95,   119 

*Kakuyusai  %i  $1  Itf  (Hamano  Nagayuki) 95 

Kaneiye  %:  %L   46 

*Kanenori  1*1  5E  (Shoami) 57 

*Kaneshige  ^   3£     Tsuba  of  iron.     In  relief  of  copper  and  gold  two 
manzai  dancers  near  pine  and  bamboo.    Cat.  No.  131 152. 
Tsuba  of  iron  with  parts  of  two  wheel-forms  cut  in  openwork.    In  relief 
of  shakud5  and  gold  insects  near  grasses.    Cat.  No.  131210. 

Kaneyuki  Ufc  fsl  (Hamano) 92 

Kanshiro  ^  P9  HP  (Nishigaki  of  Higo) 79 

Katsuhira  fflt  3s  (Mito) 134 


Index  of  Signatures  on  Sword-Mounts  173 

*Katsuju  (Katsu  in  hiragana)  t^  (Mito)  Tsuba  of  shibuichi.  In 
kebori  and  relief  of  silver,  gold,  and  copper,  two  feathers,  bird  tracks, 
fallen  maple  leaves  and  grasses.    Cat  No.  130650. 

*Katsutoshi  JH  ^1  (Ishiguro  Masahiro) 119 

*Kazunari  Shima  — ■  fi£  $h  Tsuba  of  iron.  Obverse  tinged  with  gold. 
In  relief  of  iron  a  large  vessel  (kama)  used  in  the  Cha  no  yu.  On 
reverse  a  rolled  kakemono  and  a  spray  of  blossoming  plum.  Cat. 
No.  130792. 

Kazunori  —  JftJ  (Fukawa) 158 

Keiho  M  1$  (Ishiguro  Masahiro) 119 

Keijo  S  ^€  (Goto)    62 

Keizui,  see  Hamano  Nagayuki 

Kenzui,  see  Hamano  Kaneyuki 

*Kichikawa,  see  Yoshimasa 

*Kikutei  Masanaga  ^J  3p  $t  ls$  Tsuba  of  shibuichi  with  reliefs 
of  gold,  shakudo,  silver,  and  copper.  Choun  on  horseback  escapes 
from  the  bomb  laid  in  the  road  before  him.     Cat.  No.  130758. 

Kinai  12   ft   83 

*Kinryusai  -^  bI  ^  (Otsuki  Hidekuni)  Tsuba  of  copper  with 
reliefs  of  shakudo  and  gold.  Swallows  flying  beneath  branches  of 
weeping  willow.    Cat.  No.  130711. 

Kita,  see  Takenori 

Kitagawa  H  £  JH  (Soten  I  and  II) 77 

*Kitsukawa,  see  Masataka 

*Kiukodo,  see  Mitsutoki 

♦Kiyokata  Ishima  fit  3f  IS  &  of  Hino  0  Sf  in  Goshu  XL  W 
Tsuba  of  iron.  Carved  in  the  round,  and  inlaid  is  a  wicker  basket 
(Jakago)  and  a  crab.    Cat.  No.  130835. 

Kiyonaga  ?jf  SI  (Tanaka) 142 

Kiyoshige  fpf  M.  (Tanaka) 142 

Kizayemon  M  &  #J  P1!  (Jakushi) 76 

Koami  rjj  PPT  M  (of  Mito) 131 

*Kofusai,  see  Yoshihiro 

Koike  /h  i&  (YoshirS) 53 

*Koji  M  it  (Otsuki  Takechika) 149 

Koju,  see  Uchikoshi  Hironaga 


174  Index  of  Signatures  on  Sword-Mounts 

Konkwan  j&  %  (Iwamoto) 107 

KSrin,  see  Otsuki  Mitsushige 

Koryusai  "j&  $P  llf  (Fukawa  Kazunori) 158 

Koryusha  ]£  f  1  fe  (Ishiguro  Masahiro) 119 

*Kosetsuken  §■  ^  $F  (Tomonao  of  Mito)  Tsuba  of  shakudo 
with  reliefs  of  silver,  copper,  and  gold.  In  high  relief  Seishin,  with 
her  one-stringed  lyre,  looks  upon  a  dragon  rising  from  the  waves. 
Cat.  No.  130620. 

Koshu  Myochin  ^  'JH   1$  J£  (Nobuiye  I) 51 

Kozui,  see  Hamano  Hiroyuki 

Kukuken  JL  (ku  in  katakana)  $f    (Tamagawa  Yoshihisa  I) .    134 

Kuninaga  PU  ^C  (of  Kaga) 56 

Kunishige  PU  Hi  (Hirado) 73 

*Kusano,  see  Hironaga 

Kuzui,  see  Hamano  Noriyuki 

Kwanjo  "%  ^  (Funada) 157 

*Kwanryusai,  see  Tomohisa 

Masaaki  ®C  9!  (Ishiguro) 120 

Masachika  JE  IS  (Nara  Yasuchika  VI) 90 

Masafusa  iUC  J§  (Tanaka) 142 

Masaharu  i§Sfc  ^  (Hamano) 96 

*Masaharu  IE  ^  of  Bushu  Tsuba  of  shibuichi  with  ishime  ground. 
Chrysanthemums  and  leaves  in  low  relief  of  shibuichi,  gold,  and  copper. 
Cat.  No.  131 129. 

*Masaharu  Terado  JE  ]£  tF  (do  in  katakana)  Tsuba  of  bronze 
mokume  surface.  In  flat  inlay  of  silver  and  kebori,  dragon-flies,  and 
a  wasp.    Cat.  No.  130799. 

*Masahide  Seiryuken  $C  ^  ^E  $P  $f  Tsuba  of  iron  with  reliefs 
of  copper  and  gold.  Chokwaro  releasing  his  horse  from  calabash. 
Cat  No.  130848. 

*Masahiro  I  to  IE  Jf  ffi  jH  Fuchikashira  of  shakudo  with  reliefs 
and  inlay  of  silver  and  gold.  Peony  blossoms  and  lion  beneath  a 
golden  moon.     Cat.  No.  13 1395. 

Masahiro  Sfc  Jf  (Ishiguro) 119 

*Masakage  i&  jk  (Tanaka  Hosonsai) 143 


Index  of  Signatures  on  Sword-Mounts  175 

Masakuni  JE  EH  (Ito) 71 

♦Masamitsu  Hakujusai  JE  fc  fi  #  ^  Tsuba  of  iron.  A  pine- 
tree  carved  in  the  round  with  sparing  inlay  of  gold  on  the  bark. 
Cat.  No.  13 1 290. 

*Masamitsu  Hayashi  JE  it  W  Tsuba  of  iron.  On  obverse,  in  relief 
of  gilded  copper,  a  crane  alighting  near  rushes.  Signed:  Masamitsu 
Hayashi.  On  the  reverse,  a  silver  moon  inlaid  in  breaking  clouds 
above  a  fish  net  stretched  on  a  pole.  Signed:  Mitsunaga  jfc  j&. 
Cat.  No.  13 1279. 

Masamori  ft  *&  (Ishiguro  Masatsune  II) 118 

Masamori  ft  -*jr  (Hosono) 124 

*Masamori  Taira  IE  ffi  3*  Tsuba  of  iron.  Carved  in  the  form  of  a 
cross  spanned  by  a  plain  rim.  Dated  fifteenth  year  of  Tempo;  that 
is,  1844.     Cat.  No.  131 121. 

Masanaga  JE  J&  (Nara)   92 

Masanaga  IE  W  (Tamagawa  Yoshinaga) 135 

*Masanori  JE  &  (Bushu) 99 

Masanori  ft  HI  (Shoami) 57 

*Masataka  Kitsukawa  JE  r^  Wi  J'l  Tsuba  of  shibuichi.  In  kebori 
and  reliefs  of  various  metals,  four  figures  representing  Yoshitsune  and 
attendants  before  the  gate  of  Ataka  no  seki.     Cat.  No.  130666. 

Masatoki  IE  ^F  (Nomura) 66 

Masatomo  ft  %\  (Okada  of  Choshu) 101 

Masatora  JE  f$L  (Akasaka) 82 

Masatoyo  IE  H  (Okada) 99 

Masatsugu  JE  2C  (Ito) 70 

Masatsugu  ft  ^C  (Yanagawa) 109 

Masatsugu  JE  -ft  (Mito) 133 

Masatsune  JE  fa  (Ito) 71 

Masatsune  JE  *r&  (Jingoro  of  Ito) 100 

Masatsune  ft  ^  (Ishiguro) 117 

*Masayasu  JE  JH  (Higo) 80 

Masayoshi  JE   pf  (Ito) 71 

Masayoshi  JE  ^  (Nomura) 66 

Masayoshi  JE  jtf  (Ichirobei  of  Nara) 113 


176  Index  of  Signatures  on  Sword-Mounts 

Masayoshi   T  M&  (Tsuneshige  of  Nara) 89 

Masayoshi  §fc  ^  (Ishiguro) 117 

Masayoshi  WL  )!L  (Iwama) 97 

Masayoshi  i|$C  ^  (Tanaka) 142 

*Masayoshi  IE  Up  Tsuba  of  shibuichi.  In  kebori  and  reliefs  of  gold 
and  shakudo,  herons  resting  beneath  a  willow.    Cat.  No.  130688. 

♦Masayoshi  Sunagawa  Shohakudo  JE  tf  $  JH  &  ffi  ^ 

Kozuka  of  shibuichi.    On  shakudo  plate  three  flying  swallows  in  relief 
of  silver,  copper,  and  gold.    Cat.  No.  131368. 

Masayuki  lUC  I§1  (Hamano  ShSzui) 92 

*Matahashiro  XA$  (Myochin  Sadaiye) 51 

Matashichi  X  -t  (Kasuga  of  Higo) 80 

Miboku  $C  M  (Hamano) 92,  94 

Michinaga  3®.  H  (Yatabe  of  Mito) 131 

*Minamoto  W*  (Ichinomiya  Nagatsune)    122 

Mito  7jC  P   (see  also  Suifu) 130 

Mitsuhiro  %  Jf  (of  Hizen) 75 

*Mitsuhiro  Otsuki  it  5i»  >fc  R  Tsuba  of  shakudS  nanako.  In  relief 
of  various  metals,  three  children  gathering  shells  at  the  seashore.  Cat. 
No.  130623. 

Tsuba  of  brass  with  reliefs  of  copper  and  gold.      A  fish-net  stretched 
upon  a  pole  to  dry.    Cat.  No.  130728.     (See  p.  147.) 

Mitsumasa  55   H   (Tsuji) 125 

Mitsunaga  it  H  (Kanzawa) 135 

Mitsunaga,  see  Masamitsu  Hayashi 

Mitsunao  it  Si!  (Otsuki) 147 

Mitsuoki  it  M  (Otsuki) 146 

Mitsusada  it  M   (Yokoya) 107 

Mitsushige  it  $C  (Otsuki) 146 

Mitsutoki  f3l  Je  (Omori) 116 

♦MitSUtoki  Kiukodo  it  R$  S&  "&  ^  Fuchikashira  of  shakudo, 
ground  simulating  leather.  In  relief  of  shibuichi  two  roaches  near 
blossoming  bean-plant  in  relief  of  shakudo  and  silver.  Cat. 
No.  I3i393» 

Mitsutsune  it  $L  (Otsuki) 146 


Index  of  Signatures  on  Sword-Mounts  177 

Mitsuyasu  it  $c  (Goto) 160 

Mitsuyo  it  ft  (Goto  Ichijo) 155 

Mitsuyoshi  it  J|  (Goto) 64 

Mitsuyoshi  it  H  (Otsuki) 146 

*Mitsuyoshi  Chugo  it  3?  *\*  fa"  Tsuba  of  silver.  A  coiled  snake 
carved  in  the  round.    Cat.  No.  130594. 

Mitsuyuki  it  tf  (Goto  Ichijo) 155 

Miyata  ^  EH  (Nobuhisa) 161 

*Mori,  see  Jomei 

Morikuni  i&  iH  (Sh5ami) 57 

*Morimitsu  Jf-  it  Tsuba  of  brass.  Ishime  ground.  In  recessed  relief, 
kebori  and  flat  inlays  of  copper  and  silver,  Shoki  chases  a  demon 
who  flees  through  one  of  the  riohitsu.    Cat.  No.  130725. 

*Morinao  $6fc   if[     Tsuba  of  bronze.     A  reclining  ox  carved  in  the  round. 

Cat.  No.  130755- 

Morinobu  ^P  fit  (Soyo  I) 105 

*Moritatsu  Ryukeisai  SI  )jk  #P  JP:  $t  Tsuba  of  iron  with  reliefs 
and  inlays  of  gold.  A  tiger  near  a  waterfall  looks  up  toward  the 
stormy  sky.     Cat.  No.  131311. 

Moritomi  -5$  ^  (Shoami) 57 

Moritsugu  1$  #t  or  ^  2C  (Soyo  I) 105 

Moritsune  ^Sc  'ffiT  (Ishiguro  Masatsune  II) 118 

Motoharu  7C  Rjff  (Fujita  of  Mito) 130 

Motonaga  7C  Jc  (Okawa  of  Mito) 130 

Motonaga  7C  H  (Nanj5  of  Mito) 134 

Motosada  7C  M  (Okawa  of  Mito) 130 

Mototada  %  *&  (Seo  of  Mito) 134 

*MotOtane  Chiba  %  JfJL  T"  3i  Fuchikashira  of  shakudo.  In  relief 
of  gold,  spiders  in  their  nets.  Inscribed:  Chiba  Mototane,  iye  wa 
Kisakata  no  higashi  ni  art  ("My  house  lies  east  of  Kisakata").  Cat 
No.  131391- 

Motozane  JC  ^  (Oyama  of  Mito) 130 

Munekuni  ^  Pi9  (Myochin) 52 

Munenori  %£  ffl  (Myochin) 52 

Munetoshi  %£  ffl  (Nara) 92 


178  Index  of  Signatures  on  Sword-Mounts 

Muneyoshi  ^   pi   (Umetada) 69 

Muryu  |£   W,  (Goto  Ichijo) 155 

*Mutsuda,  see  Takenori 

MySchin  f$  &   50 

Myoju  BB    %  (Umetada  Shigeyoshi  II) 67 

Nagaaki   H  %  (Natsuo) 148 

Nagaharu  ^C  M-  (Joi) 87 

*Naganori  Ryumin  H  ^6  W.  BE  Tsuba  of  shibuichi  bounded  by  an 
iron  rim  sculptured  to  represent  clouds.  In  relief  of  shakudo,  silver, 
and  gold,  Saigyo  Hoshi  is  seated  near  a  stream,  contemplating  the 
peak  of  Fuji.    Cat.  No.  130768. 

*Nagatake  Imai  ^C  j£  yi*  ^  Fuchikashira  of  shakudo  nanako.  In 
fan-shaped  fields  are  autumn  flowers  and  grasses  in  relief  of  gold, 
silver,  and  copper.  (H.  Joly  lists  this  artist  among  the  nineteenth- 
century  artists.     See  Naunton  Coll.     No.  403.)    Cat.  No.  131390. 

Nagatsune  Jfc  1ft  (Ichinomiya) 122 

Nagayoshi  H  SI  (Ichinomiya) 122 

Nagayuki  ft.  P$|  (Hamano) 95 

Nakai  W  #  (Nobutsune) 101 

Nakanori  W  %&  (Murakami  Jochiku) 127 

Nanjo  ^  $?  (Motonaga  of  Mito) 134 

Naofusa  fft  2§  (Okamoto) 103 

Naoharu  \M.  ^  (Yanagawa) 109 

*Naoka  jft  #  (Oda  and  Fujiwara  of  Satsuma) 83 

Naokatsu  flit  j£  (Inagawa) 112 

Naomasa  jit  iE  (Yoshiro  Koike) 53 

Naomasa  jit  $C  (Yanagawa) 109 

Naomitsu  it  %  (Yanagawa) no 

Naoshige  1ft  j$  (Okamoto) 103 

♦Naosure  Onishi  1ft  JH  ^  l§  Tsuba  of  iron  with  edge  carved  to 
represent  clouds.  In  relief  of  silver  and  copper,  three  horses  beneath 
blooming  cherry-trees.  Cat.  No.  130807. 

Naoteru  lit  )M  (Sano) in 

Naoyoshi  it  f&  (Sano) 1 1 1 


Index  of  Signatures  on  Sword-Mounts  179 

Naoyuki  fli[  BS  (Hamano) . 95 

Nara  &  &   86 

♦Narimasa  Wt  H  (Umetada) 69 

Narisuke  #fc  ^  (Hirata) 129 

Naritsugu  WL  ^t  (Umetada) 68 

Natsuo  J£  ^i  (Kan5) 146 

Niudo  A  IE  (Soten  of  Saheishi) 77,  128 

♦Nobufusa  fH  i§  (Bushu) 100 

♦Nobuhisa  fit  ^V  (Miyata) 161 

Nobuiye  fit  l£  (Myochin) 46 

Nobukiyo  ft  f^  (Miyata) 161 

Nobumasa  a  ft  (Choshu) 101 

*Nobumasa  Harushima  f  1^1  &  Small  tsuba  of  silver  with 
plum-blossoms  on  the  edge  in  relief  of  silver  and  shakudo.  Cat. 
No.  130596. 

*Nobutoki  fff  Jc  Menuki  of  shibuichi  carved  in  form  of  a  turtle  near 
swirling  water-lines.     Cat.  No.  13 1397. 

Nobutsune  fit  {S  (Nakai) 101 

Nobuyoshi  fit  $L  (Hata) 97 

Nobuyuki  6§  R|  (Hamano) 94 

Nobuyuki  fit  Rl  (Iwama) 97 

Nomura  if  #   66 

*NorimitSU  Goshu  !$fc  jfe  ft  ^H  Tsuba  of  iron  with  inlays  of  silver, 
copper,  and  gold.     Hikonebori,  Seven  Sages  of  the  Bamboo  Grove. 

*NoritOshi  Shoji  $&  Wt  $L  1*J  Tsuba  of  shibuichi  with  reliefs  of  cop- 
per, silver,  and  gold.  The  attendants  of  Fudd  standing  on  cliffs 
above  a  waterfall  beneath  clouds  sculptured  from  shibuichi.  (H. 
Joly  lists  this  artist  among  the  nineteenth-century  Hamano  artists. 
See  Naunton  Coll.    No.  1599.)    Cat.  No.  130671. 

Noriyoshi  $g  H  (Hamano) 95 

Noriyuki  5£  p5l  (Hamano) 93 

Okada  |S3   B9    99 

Okamoto  |29  H   103 


180  Index  of  Signatures  on  Sword-Mounts 

Okitaka  H  #  (Ikeda  of  Otsuki) 147 

Omori  ;Jc  2£t   113 

Onkokwan  :&  ~ti  JR»  (Yanagawa  Naoharu)    109 

*Onishi,  see  Naosure 

Otsuki  ^C  M    146 

Otsuryuken  Zu  #P  $f  (Hamano) 92,  94 

Rakui  151  M  (Nobuiye  II) 51 

♦Rakuju  ISt  #  (Masayasu  of  Higo) 80 

Renj5  M  ^1  (Goto) 63 

Rinsendo  $£  J'i  ^  (Tsuji  Mitsumasa) 125 

Rizui,  see  Hamano  Toshiyuki 

Ryokwan  Jj£.  %  (Iwamoto) 107 

Ryoun  fk  3£  (Konkwan) 107 

Ryuashi  IP  !^  ^  (Fukawa  Kazunori) 158 

*Ryujusai,  see  Nobuhisa 

*Ryukeisai,  see  Moritatsu 

*Ryumin,  see  Naganori 

*Ryuo,  see  Ichitoshi 

Sadaiye  M  ^  (Myochin) 51 

*Sadanaka  Banryuken  M  T  $&  H  $F  Small  tsuba  of  shibuichi. 
In  high  relief  of  shakudo  and  silver,  a  carp  and  two  salmon  swimming 
among  water  plants  inlaid  in  relief  of  gold.    Cat.  No.  130697. 

*SadatOshi  M.  W  Tsuba  of  copper.  Squirrels  among  grape  vines 
carved  in  low  relief,  the  fruit  in  relief  of  gold.    Cat.  No.  130710. 

Sadatsune  Jiseitei  ^  S   @  4  ^      Tsuba  of  brass.    A  heron  on  a 
leafless  tree  in  relief  of  silver  and  shibuichi.     Cat.  No.  130748. 

Sadatsune  Ji   fe      Tsuba  of  iron.      In  low  relief  and  kebori  cherry- 
blossoms  floating  on  a  running  stream.     Cat.  No.  13 1204. 

Sakunoshin  f^  £.  jift  (Tomohisa  of  Choshu) 102 

Sano  i£.  2?   in 

Sanso  2  3?x  (Haruaki  Hogen) 150 

Satsuma  H  J8?   83 


Index  of  Signatures  on  Sword-Mounts  181 

♦Seiansha  $?  3c  H"     no 

*Seii  U  M  (Goto) 159 

♦Seijo  Ishikawa  Jukokusai  ft  ^  ^  J'l  #  ■  &  Tsuba  of 
iron.  In  relief  of  shibuichi,  a  carp  ascending  a  waterfall  near  which 
bamboo  sprouts  (in  gold)  grow.    Cat.  No.  131 173. 

Seijoken,  see  Yoshiyuki 

*Seiryoken  *fe  ffl,  ?F  (Katsuhira  of  Mito,  see  Hara,  p.  43) 

Large  tsuba  of  iron.  In  high  relief  of  copper  an  octopus  near  shells 
and  seaweed  in  relief  of  silver,  shakudo,  and  gold.  Cat.  No.  130773. 
Fuchikashira  of  shakudo.  Rice  ears  and  stalks  in  relief  of  gold.  Cat. 
No.  131380. 

*Seiryuken  ilf  $|)  $f  (Ishiguro  Yoshinari) 120 

*Seishichiro,  see  Yoshihisa  Fujiwara 

Seiunsha  i*f  fH  lis   (Yanagawa  Naoharu) 109 

Sekijoken  #  $,  $f  (Motozane  I  of  Mito) 130 

*Sekiyosai  ^J  ^p  3sF  Tsuba  of  iron  with  raised  rim.  In  low  relief 
and  kebori  a  dragon  moving  through  waves.     Cat.  No.  1 30831. 

Setsuzan  H*  Hi   (Ichinomiya  Nagatsune) 122 

*Shiba  Yamashiro  daijo    p]  M|  ill  $c  ^C  £&  (Otsuki  Takechika)   149 

*Shigechika  ^  iH  (Nara  of  Yedo  in  Bushu)  Tsuba  of  shakudo 
with  flat  inlays  of  copper,  gold,  and  silver.  A  hunter  with  a  gun  ap- 
proaches a  trap  toward  which  a  fox  is  looking.    Cat.  No.  130603. 

*Shigehisa  lit  !K  (Inagawa) 112 

Shigekatsu  2£  jfe  (Inagawa) 112 

Shigemune  ^  ^  (Umetada) 67 

Shigesada  Hi  /£  (Shoami) 57 

Shigetsugu  'M.  2C  (Nara) 89 

Shigeyasu  j?£  $c  (Inouye) 143 

Shigeyoshi  I  S   n  or  H  (Tachibana) 67 

Shigeyoshi  j£  ?!f   (MySju) 67 

Shigeyoshi  II  j|!  its  (son  of  Shigeyoshi  Myoju) 67 

*Shima,  see  Issei 

Shingen  fit  5£  45 

Shinjo  ^f.  fH  (Goto) 62 

Shirobei  0  $S  ^  ffi  (Omori) 113 


1 82  Index  of  Signatures  on  Sword-Mounts 

Shiryudo  ^    W.  ^  (Otsuki  Mitsuoki) 146 

Sh5  13  or  W*  (Haruaki  Hogen) 150 

Shoami  JE  m  M   57 

*Shofudo,  see  Toshihiro 

Shogintei  fa  0^  ^  (Araki  Tomei) 160 

Shohachi  JfiL  A  (Goto) 147 

*Shohakudo,  see  Masayoshi  (Sunagawa) 

*Shoji,  see  Noritoshi 

Shoraku  JE  ISI  (Okamoto  Naoshige) 103 

Shoriken,  see  Harutaka 

Shozui,  see  Hamano  Masayuki 

Shummei,  see  Haruaki  Hogen 

Shunnin  ^  t3:  (Haruaki  Hogen),  read  Haruzumi  by  Hara  .  .  150 

Shunshodo  ^  BH  ^  (Konkwan) 107 

Shuten  ^  $L  (Soten  I) 77 

Soheishi  H  #J  ~P  (Soten  I  and  II) 77 

Somin  ^  3R  (Yokoya) 105 

Sonobe  HJ    nU   .  .  ! 144 

Soryu  *£  $P  (Yanagawa  Naomasa) 109 

Soten  ^  Jft  (Soheishi) 77 

Soyen  ^  H  (Yanagawa  Naomasa) 109 

Soyo  ^  H  (Yokoya) 105 

Soyu  ^  'fi   (Nara  Toshiharu) 87 

Sozayemon  *$&  S:  Hf  P1!  (Hosono  Masamori) 125 

Suifu  2R  M  (Mito) 133 

Sunagawa  #£  JM 82 

Tadamasa  JS&  IE  (Akasaka) 82 

Tadatoki  J&  K3f  (Akasaka) 82 

Taio  #J"  HI  (Haruaki  Hogen) ' 151 

Taizan  M-  |JL|   (Sekijoken  Motozane) 130 


FIELD  MUSEUM  OF  NATURAL  HISTORY. 


ANTHROPOLOGY,   VOL.   XVI,    PL.   LXI. 


TOSHINAGA  (p.  87).  JOI  (p.  87). 


3  4 

NORIYUKI  (p.  94).  NOBUYUKI    (p.  97). 


NOBUYOSHI  (p.  97). 


TSUNENAO  (p.  122).  MASAKAGE  (p.  143). 


YOSHIHIDE  (p.  145). 


10 

HAKUO  (p.  156). 


9        f\ 


n 


k-i 


SHIGEYASU(p.  143). 


11  12 

YOSHIYUKI  (p.  159).  TERUAKI  (p.  183). 


■RBsnyoFuoftLL.. 


*g»g^Mfc^y^ 


J2  RAttl 

Index  of  Signatures  on  S  Word-Mounts  183 

Takamoto  ^5  4^  (Hidemuni) 143 

Takanaga  #   #  (Ikeda) 147 

*Takaoki  ^  ^  Tsuba  of  shibuichi.  Three  sanderlings  in  relief  of 
gold  and  shakudo  flying  above  waves  in  katakiribori.     Cat.  No.  130662. 

Takahashi  M  $*    127 

Takechika  ^  M  (Otsuki) 149 

*Takenori  Kita  jr£  fl'J  H-  ^  Kozuka  of  shibuichi.  A  crane  is 
inlaid  in  relief  of  silver  and  gold.  Cat.  No.  131385. 

♦Takenori  Mutsuda  jr£  JJ'J  W.  ffl  of  Mitsugu  H  ^C  {£  in  Bingo 
VS  iX  Tsuba  of  iron.  In  low  relief  with  inlays  of  gold,  three 
folding  fans  carved  on  the  obverse.  Dated  1st  month,  2nd  year  of 
Keio;  that  is,  1866.     Cat.  No.  131 117. 

Tamagawa  3£  J'1   134 

Tanaka  ffl   +   142 

♦Tanetora  J8L  %  (Watari  of  Mito) 134 

Tansai   #  $  (of  Awa) 57 

Tanso  iH?  3&  (Sonobe  Yoshitsugu) 145 

Teijo  M  ^t  (Goto) 62 

Tenho  ?C  XL  55 

♦Tenkwodo  JZ  it  It  (Otsuki  Hidekuni) 148 

Terado,  see  Masaharu 

*Teruaki  Tokasanjin  (Teru  in  katakana)   1$  it  3£  |lj  A 

Tsuba  of  iron  with  ishime  ground.  A  bee  sipping  honey  from  coxcomb 
inlaid  in  copper,  gold,  and  silver.  Teruaki  in  seal,  Teru  in  Kana 
(see  Plate  LXI,  Fig.  12).    Cat.  No.  130821. 

Teruhide  ^  ^r  (Omori) 113 

Terumasa  ^  H   (Omori) 113 

Terumitsu  3fe  flfil  (Omori) 116 

Terutomo  ^  £H    (Omori) 115 

Tetsugendo  &L  7C  !§£    103 

Tetsunin  US  A  or  £L  (Kaneiye  Nidai) 49 

*Tobari,  see  Yoshihisa 

Togakushi  3ft  Wi  ~F  (Ishiguro  Masatsune  I) 117 

*Tokao,  see  Hideaki 

Tomei  M  P   (Araki) 160 


1 84  Index  of  Signatures  on  Sword-Mounts 

Tomoaki  ~$/L  1f£  (Yamada  of  Mito) 132 

Tomohisa  %L  !K  (Choshu) 102 

*Tomohisa  Kwanryusai  ^  *K  "%  m  ^  Tsuba  of  copper.  In 
high  relief  of  shakudo  a  carp  swimming  among  water-plants  in  relief 
and  inlay  of  gold.    Cat.  No.  130706. 

Tomokane  2&  ffl  (Soyo  I) 105 

Tomokata  £H  ft  (Okamoto) 103 

Tomomasa  £fl  JE  (Omori) 116 

Tomomasa  w  Ifc  (Tanaka) 142 

Tomomichi  jfc.  3H  (Hirano  of  Mito) 132 

Tomotsugu  %L  r&  (Hitotsuyanagi) 132 

Tomotsune  $L  M  (Nakai) 101 

Tomotsune  ^t  &  (Somin) 105 

Tomoyoshi  ~%L  f|£  (Hitotsuyanagi) 132 

Tomoyuki  ^t  ^  (Nakai) 101 

Tonan  2H  ^  (Somin) 105 

Toryusai  J&   f|  $£  (Tanaka  Kiyonaga) 142 

*Tosetsu  yUL  Ep  Kozuka  of  yellow  bronze.  In  sunken  relief  the  figure 
of  a  Nio  with  eyes  inlaid  in  gold.    Cat.  No.  131399. 

Toshiharu  M  Vn   (Nara) 87 

*Toshihiro  ?|  Wk  Kozuka  of  shibuichi.  In  low  relief  two  naked 
wrestlers,  one  holding  up  a  belt.    Cat.  No.  13 1384. 

*Toshihiro  Shoffldo  f'J  J|  %fc  M»  ^  Tsuba  of  shibuichi  with  low 
reliefs  and  inlays  of  silver,  shakudo,  and  gold.  The  three  laughing 
philosophers  standing  on  the  bridge.     Cat.  No.    130663. 

Toshihisa  M  ffi  (Nara) 87 

Toshikage   H  ^  (Tanaka) 142 

Toshimasa  ?•]  |5fc  (Yegawa  of  Mito) 132 

Toshimune  ^'J  ^  (Nara) 87 

Toshinaga  I  and  II  %%   H  (Nara) 87 

Toshinaga  ffl  ^C  (Chikan  of  Nara) 87 

Toshinaga   M  fc  (Zenzo  of  Nara) .  .  . 87 

Toshishige  ?!l  HI  (Tanaka) 142 

Toshiteru  ffl  H  (Nara) 87 


Index  of  Signatures  on  Sword-Mounts  185 

*Toshiyoshi  ?!l  f|£  (Garyuken  Nara) 92 

Toshiyuki  ffl  f$I  (Hamano) 92 

Toshiyuki  %C  ft  (Okamoto  Naoshige) 103 

Tou  Jt£  M  (Yasuchika  I  and  II) 90 

Toun  JSt  H  (Tamagawa  Yoshihisa  I) 134 

Tounsai  "M  if  3§f  (Yasuchika  V) 90 

Toyoaki  H  ^  (Choshu) 102 

*Toyonaga  ;H  ^£  Kozuka  of  broad  form  made  of  shibuichi.  In  kebori 
and  flat  inlay  of  various  metals,  a  hobby  horse,  a  doll,  and  other  toys. 
Cat.  No.  131392. 

Tsu  W  (Jimpo) 66 

Tsugukazu   •&   — '    Tsuba  of  iron  with  relief  of  shakudo,  silver,  and 
gold.     A  moonlight  scene  near  the  water's  edge.    Cat.  No.  130828. 

Tsuji  *fc  (Mitsumasa  Rinsendo) 125 

*Tsujin  Jusan  jiS  A  M  ill  Tsuba  of  iron  with  low  reliefs  and  inlays 
of  gold,  shibuichi,  and  silver.  A  nightingale  perched  upon  a  hang- 
ing lantern  to  which  a  poem  is  attached.     Cat.  No.  130846. 

Tsujo  at  ^S   (Got5) 62 

Tsuju,  see  Michinaga  of  Mito 

*Tsunenaga  ^T  ^C  (Hagi  in  Choshu) 102 

Tsunenao  &  ill   (Ichinomiya) 122 

Tsuneshige  ^  Hi  (Nara) 89 

Uchikoshi  ff  j&  137 

Ujiiye  J£  %,  (Nobuiye  I  and  II) 51 

Umetada  tf*  £  ffl    67 

Umetada  J§1  J&    67,  69 

Umetada  $*  J5&    67,  69 

*Watari  J£  #  (Tanetora  of  Mito) 134 

Yamashiro  ill  JNfc    47 

Yanagawa  $1  )\\    109 

Yasuchika  3c  H  (Nara) 87 


1 86  Index  of  Signatures  on  Sword-Mounts 

Yasuhira  $c  3*  (Shinozaki  of  Mito) . 132 

Yasuiye  $c  %£.  (Nobuiye  I) 51 

*Yasumitsu  28c  jfc  (of  Mito) 133 

Yasunaga  (5j&   M  (Ihei) 135 

Yasunobu  5£c  fit  (Yasuchika  I  and  II) 90 

Yasunori  $c  Jt'J  (Tamagawa) 135 

Yechizen  jfel  lift  (Nara  Toshiharu) 87 

Yegawa  XL  J'l   (of  Mito) 132 

Yenjo  M  ffe  (Goto) 62 

Yokoya  fit  & 105 

Yoshiaki  i||  $J   (Shimizu  of  Higo) 129 

Yoshiaki  ^  3f£  (Tanaka) 142 

*Yoshifusa  "pf  M  (of  Bushu)    100 

Yoshihide  ^  ^  (Sonobe) 145 

*Yoshihiro  Kofusai  it  Jf  t§9  JSt  5f!f  Tsuba  of  silver.  Carved  on 
both  sides  to  represent  a  flying  H56  bird,  the  tail  feathers  adorned  with 
flat  inlay  of  shakudo  and  of  gold.    Cat.  No.  130592. 

Yoshihisa  "pf   !K  (Myochin) 52 

Yoshihisa  $F  $k  (of  Kaga) 56 

Yoshihisa  H  !K  (Tamagawa) 134 

*Yoshihisa  Tobari  Seishichiro  Fujiwara  H  !K  f*  §H  fpf  -b 
lift  HI  mi  Fuchikashira  of  shibuichi  with  low  reliefs.  A  tiger 
hiding  in  a  bamboo  thicket.     Cat.  No.  13 1394. 

Yoshikatsu  %  jfe  (Inagawa) 112 

*Yoshimasa  Kichikawa  §t  Wi  l^f  JH  Fuchikashira  of  shibuichi 
with  high  relief  of  various  metals.  On  the  fuchi,  Raiden  rests  upon 
clouds,  surrounded  by  his  thunder  drums.  On  the  kashira,  Futen  runs 
with  his  wind  bag.    Cat.  No.  131400. 

Yoshinaga  H   M  (Tamagawa) 134 

Yoshinaga  ^  H  (Tamagawa  Masanaga) 135 

Yoshinaga  ft  J|  (Funada) 157 

Yoshinari  H  55c  (Ogawa) 120 

*Yoshinori  if;  ^  (Tsuji) 126 

Yoshiro  H  n   %   53 


Index  of  Signatures  on  Sword-Mounts  187 

Yoshishige    pf  'M.  (of  Kaga) 56 

Yoshitsugu   pi  2C  (Akao) 83 

Yoshitsugu  :3§f  $1  (Sonobe) 144 

Yoshiyasu  H  'fie  (Myochin) 51 

*Yoshiyuki  Seijoken  H  BI  trf  14  ?F  Fuchikashira  of  shakudo. 
Ground  carved  to  represent  rafts  on  which  are  scattered  cherry 
blossoms  in  high  relief  of  gold.    Cat.  No.  131498. 

Yoshiyuki  ;J§f  ^  (Tanaka) 142 

Yujo  tib  ^  (Goto) 60 

Yukimitsu  ^  it  (Choshu) 102 

Yukitoshi  #  M  (Choshu) 10 


GENERAL  INDEX 


Acala,  96. 

aikuchi,  32. 

Ainu,  suppression  of,  13 ;  ancient  sword, 

27. 

Aizu,  daimyo  of,  22. 

Alloys,  analyzed  by  W.  Gowland,  35. 

Amaterasu,  ancestor  of  emperor,  II  j 
restrained  by  shitnenawa,  118. 

Amida,  80,  119. 

amida  yasurime,  79. 

Ancestor-worship,  comments  by  W. 
Aston,  11. 

Anderson,  W.,  63,  104,  119,  160. 

Anesaki,   M.,  95. 

Antoku,  15,  54;  on  tsuba  by  Soten,  78. 

aoi,  so-called  tsuba   form,  30. 

Arai  Hakuseki,  on  weapons  from  dol- 
mens, 25. 

Archery,  early  fighting  with  bow,  29; 
arrows  on  fuchikashira,  69;  bow  of 
Mongolian,  88,  94. 

Arhat,  Nagasena,  63;  Chokwaro,  139; 
Chinnan,  144. 

Arima,  crest  of  daimyo  of,  81. 

Armorers,  tsuba  by,  37;  the  Mydchin, 
50. 

Asakawa,  K.,  on  the  early  social  or- 
ganization,   11,   12,   14. 

ashi,  25. 

Ashikaga,  1 1,  20;  influence  of  sho- 
gunate  of,  17,  46;  fighting  sword  of, 

31,  45- 
Ashikaga  Takauji,  17. 
Ashikaga  Yoshiaki,  18. 
Ashikaga  Yoshimasa,  46. 
Ashikaga  Yoshimitsu,  46. 
Aston,  W.,  11,  93,  96. 
awabi,  91. 
Awa  inlay,  57. 

Badger,  134. 

Bamboo,  83;  with  sparrow,   116;  with 

tiger,  143;  with  carp,  150. 
Basho,   poem   by,    126. 
Bean,    as    motive    for    decoration,    83; 

used  in  oni  yarai,  96. 
Behrens,  W.,  157. 
Beit,  A.,  7. 

Bells,  on  sword-hilt,  28. 
Benkei,  on  Gojo  Bridge,  65. 
Bishamon,  51. 

Blades,  found  in  dolmens,  24. 
Boar,  78. 

Bodhidharma,   135. 
Bonji,  inscriptions  on  blades,  25. 
Boston,  Fine  Arts  Museum,  29,  41. 


Bowes,  J.,  on  shippo,  39;  on  Taiko- 
bo,  124;  on  the  Hi  rata  enamelers, 
128. 

Brahma,  65;   160. 

Brinkley,  F.,  on  fittings  for  the  tachi, 
28;  on  patina,  40;  on  nanako,  60;  on 
ishime,  64 ;  on  Kinai,  83 ;  on  Nara 
school,  87;  on  noshi,  92;  on  the 
Yokoya,  105;  on  shimenawa,  119;  on 
sumisdgan,  126;  on  Natsuo,  148;  on 
the  importance  of  studying  technique, 
155- 

Brinkmann,  Justus,  7. 

Brooklyn  Museum,  25. 

Buddha,  emblems  on  feet  of,  42;  dis- 
ciples of,  63 ;  Ni-6  protectors  of,  65 ; 
incarnation  of,  95 ;  ball  a  symbol  of, 
no. 

Buddhism,  growth  of  militarism,  de- 
struction of  monasteries,  10;  intro- 
duction into  Japan,  n,  28;  influence 
on  emperor's  life,  13;  wealth  in  lands 
of  Buddhist  temples,  14;  persecu- 
tion of  priests,  18;  influence  against 
old  modes  of  burial,  24;  Zen  Sect 
of,  20,  48;  Shugendo  Sect  of,  42; 
dragon  and  pearl  in,  74,  75;  subjects 
taken  from,  96,  119;  lion  in,  109. 

Bukan  Zenji,  63;  on  tsuba,  94. 

Bull,  50. 

Bushido,  10,  32,  48. 

Butterfly,  56. 

Calabash,  on  tsuba,  41 ;  on  banner  of 
Hideyoshi,  41 ;  netsuke  in  form  of, 
91 ;  horse  proceeding  from,  139. 

Carp,  147,  149. 

Centipede,  45,  51,  61. 

Chamberlain,  B.,  43,  59,  94,  108,  118,  140. 

Chang  Kwo,  139. 

Chang  Liang,   113,130. 

Charm,  96,  151. 

Ch'eng  Ping,  113. 

Chen  Nan,  144. 

Cherry,  79,  102,  144,  156. 

chidori,  no. 

China,  system  of  government  adopted 
from,  12;  forms  of  sword-pommels 
suggest  Chinese  source,  26;  influence 
of,  seen  on  court  swords,  28;  crowns 
of,  34;  revival  of  culture  of,  48; 
chained  weapon  of,  68;  reflected  in 
Namban  tsuba,  74;  landscapes  in 
Chinese  style,  76,  99;  legends  adopted 
from,  87. 

Chinnan,  with  dragon,  on  tsuba,  144. 


189 


i  go 


Index 


Chohi,  114;  on  tsuba,  139. 

choji-buro,  42,  84. 

Chokwaro,   horse   of,   on   kozuka,    139. 

Chorio,  on  tsuba,  130. 

Choshu  clan,  II,  21,  23. 

Chowry,  on  tsuba,  135. 

Chrysanthemum,  71,  74,  79,  81,  160. 

Chu-ko  Liang,  98. 

Chung  K'wei,  89. 

Cicada,  on  tsuba,  52;  menuki  in  form 
of,  95-  . 

Cintdmani,  74. 

Clan,  original  unit  of  society,  10 ;  grow- 
ing power  of  certain  clans,  II ;  re- 
grouping of  clans,  by  emperor,  13; 
influence  of  conquest  of  Korea  on 
unification  of,  18;  reorganization  of 
daimiates,  19;  reaction  against  sho- 
gun  by  Choshu  and  Satsuma  clans, 
21,  22. 

Clay  figures,  found  in  dolmens,  24;  car- 
rying slung  sword,  25. 

Clove,  41,  42,  53- 

Cock,  on  tsuba,  123. 

Commelina,  on  fuchikashira,  98. 

Conch,  design  on  tsuba,  42;  trumpet  of, 
42,  78. 

Copenhagen,  Dansk  Kunstindustnmu- 
seum  of,  149. 

Copper,  gilded  accessories  found  in  dol- 
mens, 25,  27;  first  copper  coin  in 
Japan,  26. 

Cormorant,  fishing  with,  140. 

Crane,  chiselled  in  silhouette,  80,  83; 
on  Kinai  tsuba,  84;  with  Rinnasei,  96, 
153;  with  Fukurokuju,  no;  with  tor- 
toise on  tsuba,  in,  132;  carved  in 
openwork,  134;  released  by  Yoritomo, 
137;  above  sun- rays,  145. 

Crests,  39,  41,  42,  44,  53,  55,  56,  62,  72, 
78,  81,  82,  84,  102,  137,  147. 

Cricket,  70. 

Crow,  inlaid  on  mounts,  126. 

Daikoku,  mallet  of,  43;  on  tsuba,  152. 

Daimyo,  forerunners  of,  16;  protectors 
of  nobility,  17;  engagement  in  the 
conquest  of  Korea,  18;  reorganiza- 
tion of  daimiates  by  Iyeyasu,  19,  37; 
daimyo-nanako,  61 ;  indulgences  of 
in  1 8th  century,  86. 

Dai  Nihon  Shi,  21. 

dai-seppa,  30. 

dai-sho,  31. 

Dance,  of  Sambaso,  124;  of  lion,   140. 

Dan-no-ura,  battle  of,  15 ;  description 
54;  on  tsuba  by  Soten,  78. 

Daruma,  on  tsuba,  135. 

Dean,  B.,  on  ancient  sword-pommel,  27; 
on  Kaneiye,  47. 

Demon,  89,  93,  96,  100,  105,  147,  151. 


De  Tressan,  Marquis,  7;  on  merchant's 
swords,  9;  on  riohitsu,  34;  on  Kana- 
yama  tsuba,  41 ;  on  Yoshiro  tsuba, 
53;  on  Kinai,  83;  on  Yasuchika,  90; 
on  Yokoya,  106. 

De  Visser,  M.,  on  tomoye,  43 ;  on 
dragons  and  ball,  75. 

Diaper  patterns,  inlaid  in  brass,  37; 
kago-ami,  38;  swastika,  39;  shippd 
tsunagi  no  wuchimi  hanabishi,  Zg. 

Dickens,  F.,  no,  152. 

Dolmens,  contents  of,  24. 

Dragon,  sword  wrested  from  tail  of, 
25;  on  sword-pommels,  26;  on  armor, 
50;  on  mounts,  61;  two  dragons  af- 
fronte,  74;  genius  of  rainfall,  75;  in 
inlay,  76,  80 ;  on  Kinai  tsuba,  83 ;  with 
tiger,  95 ;  Suzano-wo  killing  eight- 
headed,  104;  emblem  of  longevity, 
112;  tortoise  with  head  of,  112;  with 
jewel,  inlaid  in  pearl,  127;  carved  on 
iron  tsuba.  132,  134;  emerging  from 
bowl  of  Chinnan,  144;  with  gem,  145; 
legend  of  dragon-gate,  150. 

Dragon-fly,  on  mounts,  43,  56. 

Dutch,  trade  at  Nagasaki,  21 ;  boat  on 
tsuba,  74. 

Eagle,  80. 

eboshi,  124,   144. 

Echizen,  troops  of,  27 ;  daimyo  of,  83. 

Eight-boat- jump,  78. 

Eight  Happy    Omens,   78. 

Eight  Immortals,   139. 

Eight  Views  of  Omi,  187. 

Elephant,  93,  169,   171. 

Emperor,  descendant  of  Sun  Goddess, 
1 1 ;  accepted  Buddhism,  1 ;  adopted 
Chinese  form  of  government,  12; 
many  retired  to  monasteries,  13;  Go- 
Daigo  banished,  17;  Go-Komatsu  ac- 
knowledged ruler,  17. 

Enamels,  39,  127. 

Essen,   V.,   149. 

Europe,  influence  of,  38,  73,  74. 

Fan,  broken,  on  tsuba,  54 ;  tsuba  in  form 

of,  58. 
Feng  Pe,  100. 
Fenollosa,  M.,  115. 
Festival,  of  dragon,  75;  decoration  for 

New   Year,   118;   of   Tanabata,   120; 

for  boys,  150. 
Feudalism,   development  of,   10-23. 
Fish,  on  charm,  96;  on  tsuba,  115. 
Fisherman,  with  net,  123;  with  pin  for 

hook,  123;  with  cormorant,   140. 
Flute,  50,  68. 
Foreigners,    diplomatic    relations    with, 

21,    22;    influence   of,    on    decorative 

motives,  73;  leading  lion,  138. 


Index 


191 


Forty-seven  Ronins,  32,  44. 

Four  Sleepers,  63. 

Fox,  on  tsuba.  107;  possession  of,  108; 

Ta  Ki,  the  nine-tailed,  133;  wedding 

procession  of,   141. 
Frog,  91. 
fuchi,  33. 

Fudo,  carrying  vajra-hilted  sword,  24; 
attendants  of,  on  tsuba  96. 
Fuji,  hunting  at  base  of,  77;  on  tsuba, 

157;  with  dragon,  161. 
Fujiwara,  11-15. 
fukinagashi,  78. 
fit  kuei  hua,  38. 
fukujuso,  66. 
Fukurokuju,  on  kashira,  10;  journeying 

toward  Fuji,  158. 
Fung  Kan,  63. 
Fushimi,  battle,  23. 
futatsu-tomoye,  43,   44,   57. 
Futen,  100. 
Futo  tama  no  Mikoto,  118. 

Ganku,  146. 

Garbutt,  M.,   157. 

Geese,  menuki  in  the  form  of,  123. 

Genji,  wars  of  with  Heike,  15;  Genji 
Monogatari,  58,  149;  Genji  symbols, 
58-59- 

Gentian,  78. 

Gentoku,  98;  on  tsuba,  114,  138. 

Ginko,  54. 

Gilbertson,  E.,  on  leather  tsuba,  30;  on 
decorated  habaki,  34;  on  Myochin, 
52. 

Gillot,  M.,  84. 

Go,  32,  61. 

Go  Daigo,   10,   17. 

gohei,  1 18   x4r- 

Gojo  Bridge,  battle  of,  65. 

Go-Komatsu,  17. 

Gold,  pure  used  by  Goto,  61 ;  plating, 
62;  edict  against  using,  86. 

gomoku-zogan,  56. 

Gonse,  L.,  120,  132,  147,  159. 

Goto,  of  Tosa,  23. 

Gourd,  on  tsuba,  41 ;  used  by  Hideyoshi, 
4*1  53;  m  Satsuma  tsuba,  83;  horse 
coming  from,   139. 

Gowland,  W.,  on  dolmens,  24;  on  the 
metals  of  early  swords,  26;  analyses 
of  alloys,  35;  on  method  of  saw- 
cutting,  71. 

Grasshopper,   56,   107. 

Greey,  E.,  7,  49. 

Griffis,  W.  E.,  on  early  military  organ- 
ization, 13;  on  Perry's  visit,  22. 

gumbai,  58. 

Gunsaulus,  Dr.  F.  W.,  7. 

guribori,  126. 


habaki,  34. 

hagi,  66,  117,  156. 

Haitorei  regulation,  9. 

Hammer-marks,   37;   of   plum   blossom 

form,  38,  45,  54. 
hanabishi,   in    all-over    pattern,   39;    as 

crest,  81. 
Hanabusa  Itcho,  103,  106. 
Hanshin  and  Shi  Tei,  95. 
Hara,  K.,  on  early  landholders,  12;  on 

Ashikaga  period,  46. 
Hara,   S.,  49,  62,  69,  90,  97,  99,    133, 

157. 
Harada,  J.,   150. 
Harakiri,  31,  32. 
Hare,  75;  with  moon,  159. 
Hawkshaw  collection,  tsuba  in,  148. 
Hayashi,  Viscount,  46. 
Hearn,  L.,  on  early  social  organization, 

1 1 ;  on  the  occupation  of  swordsmiths, 

33;  on  oni  yarai,  96;  on  foxes,  108; 

on   Tanabata   festival,    120. 
Heike,  wars  with  Genji,  15. 
Hideyori,  18,  20. 

Hideyoshi,    18,  20,  41,   53,  81,   108. 
Higo,  daimyo  of,  19. 
Higo,  tsuba  made  in  province  of,  79. 
Higo  Kinkoroku,  80. 
Hikobei,  82. 
hikone-bori,  77. 
hirazogan,  38. 
Hirth,  F.,  43,  44. 
Hitomaro,  on  tsuba,  93 ;  verse  attributed 

to,  94. 
Hiyeisan,    attacked    by    Nobunga,    10; 

equipment  of  priests  of,  42. 
Hizen,  clan  of,  23. 
Hojo,  attacked  by  priests,  10;  influence 

of  regency  of,  16. 
Hokusai,  34,  120. 
Holly,  96,  151. 

Honcho  Kokon  Zan  Ko  fu  Ryaku,  49. 
Hongwanji,  attacked  by  Nobunaga,  10. 
honzogan,  38. 
Horse,  55,   100,   101,   107,   114;  coming 

from  gourd,  139. 
H06,  on  tsuba,  188. 
Hosokawa,  daimyo  of,  79;  crest  of,  80, 

102. 
hossu,  135. 
Hotei,  on  tsuba,  87. 
Hwang  Shi  Kung,  130. 

Ichi-no-tani,  battle  of,  on  tsuba,  134. 
Inari,  108 ;  scene  at  temple  of,  on  tsuba, 

125. 
India,  65,  74. 
Indra,  65,  160. 
Inscription,    as    decorative    design,    82, 

94,  98. 
Iron,  blades  of,  found  in  dolmens,  24. 


1 92 


Index 


iroye,  HO. 

Ishida  Yutei,  122. 

ishime,  64. 

ishi-suki,  28. 

itomaki,  33. 

Iyemochi,  22. 

Izumo,  fox  worship  in,  109. 

Jacoby,  M.,  53,  66,  79. 

Jade,  armor  in  dolmens,  24;  sword- 
guard  of,  27;  Chinese  girdle  orna- 
ment of,  149. 

Jataka,  160. 

Jesuits,  supported  by  Nobunaga,  18. 

Jewel,  tsuba  form  of,  27;  two  dragons 
with,  74. 

jigai,  32.  

Joly,  H.,  7;  reference  to  prohibitions 
against  wearing  of  swords,  10;  on 
sword-blades,  24;  on  tama  tsuba,  28; 
on  long  tachi,  30 ;  on  the  katana,  31 ; 
on  smaller  swords,  32;  on  origin  of 
kogai,  34;  differentiates  between 
tsuba  of  swordsmiths  and  armorers, 
37 r;  on  restoration  of  patina,  40;  on 
Kanayama  tsuba,  42;  on  Kaneiye,  47; 
on  Fushimi  tsuba,  54;  on  Kaga  in- 
lay. 55 ;  on  the  Goto,  60 ;  on  Namban 
iron,  74;  on  titles,  77;  on  Kinai,  83; 
on  inscriptions  on  tsuba,  98;  on 
Gentoku,  114;  on  Sambaso  dance, 
124;  on  foreign  figures,  138;  on  lion 
dance,   140. 

kabuto-gane,  28. 

kado-matsu,  116,  140. 

Kaempher,  E.,  19. 

Kaga,  inlay,  55;  daimyo  of,  56. 

kage-zukashi,  41. 

kago-ami,  pattern  of,  38,  39. 

kakihan,  63. 

Kameyama,  crest  of  daimyo  of,  42. 

kamishimo,  32,  62,  70. 

kamishimosashi,  32,  62. 

Kamiyoshi,  80. 

kamisashi,  34. 

kanamono,  33. 

Kanayama,  tsuba  so-called,  41. 

Kan  no  Koso,  89. 

Kannon  tsuba,  74. 

Kano  school,  101 ;  Tanyu,  106. 

Kanshin,  on  tsuba,  113. 

Kanzan  and  Jittoku,  on  mounts,  63,  94, 

139- 

karakane,  35. 

karakusa,  39,  51. 

kara-shishi,  105;  description  of,  109; 
132;  led  by  two  foreigners,  138;  mask 
for  dance,  140;  with  peony,  109,  142. 

kashira,  28,  33. 

Kasuga,  80. 


katakiribori,  88,  105. 

Katana,  29;  early  form  and  length  of, 
31 ;   mounts  described,  33. 

katanakake,  31. 

Kato,  48. 

Katsumoto,  Matsura,  daimyo  of,  39. 

Kazusa,  crest  of  daimyo  of,  82. 

kebori,  53. 

Keiki,  22. 

Ken  jo  tsuba,  58,  83. 

Kiang-Tse-ya,  on  fuchikashira,  123. 

Kido,  23. 

kiki-ko,  59. 

kikyo,  54,  66. 

kinchaku,  32. 

Kinko  Tanki,  67. 

Ki  no  Tsurayuki,  93. 

kiri,  57,  as  design  and  crest,  81,  84. 

Kiyomori,    15. 

kobushigata,  47. 

kogai,  34. 

Kogen,  17. 

Kojiki,  on  derivation  of  the  sacred 
sword,  25,  104;  on  "mallet-headed" 
sword,  27;  legend  of  dragon-fly,  43. 

kojiri,  35. 

ko  katana,  34. 

Komei,  98. 

Komei,  22. 

Komyo-Kogo,  28. 

Kongara  Doji,  pictured  on  tsuba,  96. 

Koop,  A.,  on  the  tomoye,  44;  on  the 
kiri  crest,  81. 

Korea,  conquest  of,  18,  73;  probable 
importation  of  swords  from,  26;  Ko- 
rean wave  pattern  on  tsuba,  38. 

Kosekiko,  on  tsuba,  130. 

Kotoku,  24. 

kozuka,  34. 

kurikata,  29,  35. 

kurosukuri,  30. 

kusari-kama,  68. 

Kusunoki  Masashige,   17. 

Kuwa  Hara  Nago-no-jo,  49. 

Kuwana,  daimyo  of,  22. 

kwai  ken,  32. 

kwambaku,  meaning  of,  12;  power  of, 
13;  Hideyoshi  received  title  of,  18. 

Kwan-non,  on  tsuba  by  Masahiro,  119. 

Kwan  Yii,  94,  114;  with  Chohi  on 
tsuba,  138. 

Landscape,  on  tsuba,  47,  76,  99,  158. 

Lantern,  48,  89. 

Lao-tse,   1 10. 

Laufer,   B.,  on  jade  sword-guard,  27; 

on  chained  weapon,  68 ;  on  mantis,  98 ; 

on  karashishi,  109;  on  symbolism  of 

two  carp,   149. 
Lin  Hwo-ching,  96,  152. 


Index 


193 


Lion,  61,  66,  105,  109,  138;  dance,  140; 

with  peony,  142. 
Liu  Pei,  114. 
Lobster,  on  kojiri,  35;  with  shimenawa 

on   fuchikashira,   1 18. 
Longevity,  emblems  of,  1 11,  132. 
Lotus,  on  tsuba,  136. 

magatama,  43. 

Maitreya,  88. 

makimono,  Keion,  29;  designs  taken 
from,  125. 

mamori  katana,  32. 

Mandarin  ducks,  on  tsuba,   134. 

Mantis,  on  fuchikashira,  98;  Laufer,  on 
legend  of,  98. 

marubori,   55;    marubori  zdgan,  77. 

Maruyama  Okyo,  122. 

Masako,  16. 

Mask,  on  Kinai  tsuba,  83,  84;  kashira 
in  form  of,  103;  for  Sarugaku,  124, 
151 ;  for  lion  dance,  140. 

matsukawa  bishi,  29. 

Mayers,  W.,  124,  131,  133. 

McClatchie,  T.,  on  feudal  mansions, 
20,  Narita  crest,  102. 

mekugi,  33. 

menuki,  33. 

metezashi,  32. 

Metropolitan  Museum,  25,  26. 

Mikawa,  daimyo  of  province  of,  109. 

Minamoto,  clan  subdued  warring  tribes, 
13;  in  rivalry  with  Taira,  15,  54,  78, 
134;  crest  of,  78,  137. 

minogatne,  on  tsuba,  112. 

Mio-no-Matsubara,  on  tsuba,   157,   161. 

misasagi,  the  contents  of,  24. 

Mitford,  A.,  on  harakiri,  32;  on  foxes 
wedding,  141. 

mitsu-tomoye,  significance  of,  43,  44; 
tsuba  in  form  of,  53 ;  on  drum  car- 
ried by  monkey,  70 ;  as  crest,  81 ;  on 
drum  of  Raiden,  100,  104. 

Mito,  Prince  of,  21 ;  clan  of,  22. 

mitokoromono,  35. 

mizuhiki,  92. 

mokkd,  37. 

mokume-ji,  50,  52. 

Mongol,  on  tsuba,  88,  94. 

Mongolian  invasion,  16,  37. 

Monkey,  35,  70,  75,  80,  92. 

Mononobe,   11. 

Moon,  on  fan-shaped  tsuba,  58;  with 
dragon,  75 ;  scholar  reading  by,  93 ; 
with  hare,  159. 

Mosle,  A.,  on  the  Goto,  60;  on  gold- 
plating,  61,  86. 

Mother-of-pearl,  on  tsuba,  127. 

Mulberry,  leaf,  on  tsuba,   159. 

Munro,  N.,  26,   152. 

Murasaki  Shikibu,  58;  on  tsuba,  148. 


musubi-gane,  28. 
Mutsuhito,  22,  32. 
Myoto-Seki,    1 18. 

Nagasaki,  port  of  trade,  9,  21,  74-77. 

Nagasena,  on  tsuba,  63. 

Nagaya,  S.,  80. 

nakago,  33. 

Nakatomi,  11. 

Nakoso,  Yoshiiye  at  gate  of,  144. 

Namban,  dragon  motive  similar  to,  26 ; 

meaning  of  word,  73. 
nanako,  29,  60. 
Narayana,  64. 
Narihira,  on  tsuba,  131. 
Narita,  crest  of,  102. 
nashiji,  imitated  in  metal,  97,  119,  161. 
Nasu  no  Yoichi,  54. 
Naunton  collection,  mounts  in,  51,  100, 

106,   no,  143,   150,   156,  157. 
neri,  so-called  tsuba,  30. 
New  Year,   decorations   for,    116,    118, 

140. 
Nichols,   H.,  on   restoration  of  patina, 

40,  163-166. 
Nihongi,  account  of   Soga  family,   n; 

on  "mallet-headed"  sword,  27;  legend 

of   dragon-fly,  43. 
Ni-i  no  ama,  on  tsuba,  78. 
Ni-6,  on  mounts,  64,  112. 
Nitobe,  I.,  on  feudalism,  10,  15. 
Nitta  Yoshisada,  17. 
No,    "Battle    of     Gojo    Bridge,"    65; 

masks  used  in,  83 ;  dance  of  Takigind, 

124. 
Nobunaga,  10,  18,  19. 
Noritsune,  on  tsuba,  78. 
noshi,  on   fuchikashira,  91. 
nunome-zdgan,  39. 

8ban,  on  tsuba,  152. 

Octopus,  on  tsuba,  80,  183. 

Oeder,  G.,  collection  of,   126,   136. 

Ogata  Korin,  90. 

ogi,  53- 

Okabe,  K.,  41,  45,  46,  55- 

Okakura,   K.,  on  Ashikaga  ideals,  20; 

on  dragon  and  tiger,  95. 
Okubo,  I.,  23. 
ominatneshi,  56,  156. 
omodaka,  66,  71 ;  crest  with,  81 ;  carved 

on  tsuba,  102. 
oni,  89,  96,  100. 
Onin,  civil  war  of  period  of,  37;  tsuba 

so-called,  53. 
oni  yarai,  on  kozuka,  96;   charm   for, 

151- 
Ota,  family  of,  102. 
Owari,  22. 
Ox,  tsuba  in  form  of,  100;  on  tsuba, 

122. 


194 


Index 


pa  chi  hsing,  42. 

Palmer,  Maj.,  140. 

pa  pao,  42. 

Patina,  recipes  for  producing,  40;  res- 
toration of,  40,  163-166;  on  Kinai 
tsuba,  83 ;  on  Choshu  tsuba,  101. 

Peacock,   on   fuchikashira,   116. 

Pelton,  J.,   158. 

Peony,  with  flames  on  waves,  38;  in- 
laid on  mounts,  56,  69;  with  kara- 
shishi,  109,  142;  by  Natsuo,  147;  by 
Ichijo,   157. 

Perry,  Coram.,  16,  21,  22. 

Persimmon,  in  relief  of  coral  on  tsuba, 
in. 

Pewter,  plugging  riohitsu,  34;  inlay  of, 
49;  mending  with,  69. 

Pheasant,  on  tsuba  by  Masayoshi,  117. 

Phoenix,  head  on  pommel,  26;  head  on 
boat,  78;  one  of  the  four  supernat- 
ural animals,  112;  on  tsuba,  188. 

Pickling,  of  alloys  for  shading,  35 ;  for 
restoration  of  patina,  40. 

Platycodon-grandifiora,  54. 

Plum,  38,  42,  54;  blossom  used  in  sig- 
nature, 67,  70;  chiselled  in  silhouette, 
81 ;  tsuba  in  form  of  tree  of,  103 ; 
emblem  of  longevity,  m,  115. 

Pommel,  types  found  in  dolmens,  25, 
27;  covered  with  same,  28. 

Porter,  W.,  91. 

Portuguese,  importation  of  firearms  in- 
fluenced inlay,  38;  influenced  designs, 
73-  . 

Pu-tai  Ho-shang,  87. 

Raiden,  design  on  drums  of,  43 ;    pic- 
tured on  tsuba,   100,  104. 
Raiko,   100. 
Raisho,  147. 

Rashomon,  gate  of,  100,  146. 
Rats,  in  procession,  on  tsuba,   141. 
Rhinoceros  horn,  42. 
Rinnasei,  on  tsuba,  96,  152. 
riohitsu,  34. 
Rishi,  63. 
Riuto,  93. 

sabi-dashikata,  40. 

sageo,  29,  35. 

Sambaso,  mask  on  kozuka,  124;  cos- 
tume of,  151. 

sambo-gin,  36. 

same,  29. 

Samurai,  number  of  in  19th  century, 
9;  Nitobe's  definition  of,  15;  under 
the  Tokugawa  shoguns,  19-21 ;  his 
devotion  to  his  sword  and  his  lord, 
31,  32.  t 

San  Sukime,  91. 

Sardine,  in  charm,  96. 


Satsuma,  clan,  IX,  21,  23. 

say  a,  33. 

Scabbards,  of  swords  found  in  dolmens, 
24;  brocade  covered  mamori-katana, 
32. 

Scidmore,  E.,  69. 

Schiller,  P.,  92. 

Screen,  57. 

Seitaka,  Doji,  on  tsuba,  96. 

Sekigahara,  battle  of,    18,   19. 

Sennin,  63. 

sentoku,  35. 

seppa,  33. 

seppa-dai,  30. 

Sesshu  46,  48,  88. 

Setsu  bun,  96. 

shakudo,  35. 

Shells,  83. 

shibuichi,  36. 

Shichifukujin,  87,  110,  151,  152. 

shiiremono,  7,  73,  86. 

Shikken,  Hojo  Tokimasa  the  first,   16. 

Shimabara,  masacre  of  Christians  at, 
20. 

shimadai,  112. 

shimenawa,  used  in  purification  rites, 
33;  on  fuchikashira,  118;  its  signifi- 
cance, 118,  140,  151. 

Shimizu,   family,  80. 

shimofuri,  56. 

Shimonoseki,  22. 

Shinto,  shitogi  cake  used  in  ritual,  28; 
purification  rites  performed  by  sword- 
smiths,  33;  tomoye  crest  in  shrine, 
44;  god,  Onamuji-no-Mikoto,  68. 

Shippo,  39. 

shippo   tsunagi,  no  wuchimi  hanabishi, 

39,  71.. 
shiratachi,  30. 
shitabakama,  147. 
Shi  Tenno,  65. 
Shitogi  tsuba,  28,  29. 
slid,  14. 

shochikubai,  ill. 
Shogun,    early    meaning    of    title,    13; 

Yoritomo  made  shogun,  16 ;  Ashikaga 

shoguns,  17;  Tokugawa  shoguns,  18- 

23- 
Shojiro,  M.,  84. 
Shoki,  on  tsuba,  89,  105. 
Shosoin,  28,  29. 
shou,  74. 
shugo,  16,  46. 
Shukuo,  103. 
Sickle,  on  tsuba,  68. 
Skull,  on  tsuba,  48,  148. 
Snail,  on  tsuba,  91. 
Snake,  on  tsuba,  91 ;   on  fuchikashira, 

98. 
Snow-flakes,  on  tsuba,  156. 
Soga,   11. 


Index 


195 


Soken  Kisho,  51,  99. 

Sokko  Zenshi,  49. 

soroimono,  35. 

Sparrow,  menuki  in  form  of,  107;  with 
bamboo,  116;  on  fuchikashira,  160. 

Stone,  swords  of,  found  in  dolmens,  24. 

Strohl,  H.,  82. 

Su  Hi,  147. 

suisen,  66. 

sukashi,  70. 

sumi-sdgan,  126. 

Sun,  goddess  of,  n,  72,  118;  disk  on 
fan,  54,  58;  on  national  flag,  72. 

Susano-wo  wrests  sword  from  dragon's 
tail,  25,  104. 

susu,  on  kozuka,  124,  151. 

Swastika,  39,  70. 

Swordsmiths,  rites  performed  by,  33 ; 
tsuba  made  by,  37 ;  the  Myochin  fam- 
ily, SO. 

Tachi,   found   in  dolmens,  25;   mounts 

described,  28. 
tachibana,  29. 

Tadamori,  on  tsuba,  88,  106,   120. 
Taikobo,   on   fuchikashira,   123. 
Tai  Kung,  on  tsuba,  133. 
Taira,   11,   13,   15,  19,  54,  78. 
Taishun,  171. 
Tajima,  S.,  65. 
Takamura,  on  tsuba,  91,  94. 
takarabune,  39. 
takaramono,  39,   128. 
Takasago,  aged  couple  of,  112. 
takasogan,  38. 
Ta  Ki,  on  tsuba,  133. 
Tametomo,  15. 

Tanabata,  festival  on  tsuba,  120. 
tanto,  32. 
Tanyii,  159. 
tansaku,  in  Tanabata  festival,  121 ;  on 

tsuba,  158. 
Taoism,  63,  75,  95. 
Tests,  of  blades,  33. 
Three  Heroes  of  Shu,  138. 
Thunder,  god  of,  43 ;  ball,  symbol  of,  75. 
Tiger,  with  Bukan  Zenji,  63,  94;  with 

dragon,  95,  112;  in  storm,  132,  149; 

with  bamboo,  143. 
Tobacco-pipe,  on  kozuka,  64,  107. 
togashi-sogan,  126. 
Tokimasa,  16. 
Tokugawa,  short  description  of  period 

of,  18-23. 
Tokugawa  Iyeyasu,  18. 
Tokyo  Museum,  26. 


Toledo,  Museum  of  Art,  156. 

tomoye,  its  varying  forms  and  meanings, 

43 ;  used  as  a  crest,  44. 
Tomoye  Gozen,  69. 
Tortoise,  on  tsuba,  112. 
Tortoise-shell  design,  51,  70. 
Tosa,  22. 
tsuba,  definition   of,   25 ;   copper-gilded 

tama  form,  27 ;  shitogi  form,  28 ;  neri, 

30 ;  aoi,  30 ;  mokkd  form,  37 ;  kobushi- 

gata  form,  47. 
tsui-shiu,  126. 
tsuka,  33. 
tsuka-ai,  28. 

tsurugi,  found  in  dolmens,  24. 
tsuyukusa,  98. 
Two  Deva  Kings,  64. 

udenuki,  34. 
umajirushi,  78. 
urajiro,  118. 
uragawara,  34. 

vajra,  "thunderbolt",  on  sword-hilt,  24; 

engraved  on  kozuka  blade,  34 ;  in  hand 

of  Ni-6,  64,  65. 
Vajrapani,  64. 
Vautier,  P.,  43,  83,  155- 

ivakisashi,  31. 
Waley,  A.,  94. 
Watanabe,  on  tsuba,  100,  146;  crest  of, 

147. 
Waves,  undercutting  of,  114. 
Wen  Wang,  123. 
Wistaria,  on  tsuba,  79. 
Wolf,  on  tsuba,  148. 

Yamabushi,  equipment  of,  42. 

yang  and  yin,  43. 

Yasoshima,  91. 

Yedo,  capital  of  shogun,  19 ;  changed  to 

Tokyo,  22. 
Yoritomo,  10,  15,  16 ;  on  tsuba  by  Soten, 

78;  on  tsuba  by  Hironaga,  137. 
Yoshiiye,  crest  of,  81 ;  at  the  gate  of 

Nakoso,  144. 
Yoshimitsu,  17. 
Yoshitsune,  15,  16,  50;  pictured  on  Gojo 

bridge,  65;  at  battle  of  Dan-no-ura, 

78;  at  Ichi-no-tani,  134. 
Yoshitomo,  15. 
yusuruha,  119. 

Zen  sect,  influence  of  teaching  on  war- 
rior class,  20;  philosophy  of,  48; 
Daruma  introduced  into  Japan  by,  35. 


HECKMAN 

BINDERY   INC. 


Bound  -To-H-rf  N  MANCHESTER. 
Bound        new     |ND,ANA  46962 


